Give or Take
by SometimesGhostsSeeKids
Summary: AU. Two students are missing in the wake of the villain attack on the Quirk Training Camp. What will happen to them, and how will the public respond? Rated M for graphic violence and language.
1. Taken

Katsuki Bakugou took his time staring each of the villains before him down. Some of them shot nervous glances towards their hand-covered leader, but most of them didn't even bother to return his gaze. Said leader, for his part, didn't look fazed at all. Instead, his attention was focused on someone else in the room. More specifically, the green-haired idiot sitting right beside Bakugou.

Deku had, in his infinite wisdom, decided that the best course of action to save him from his kidnappers was to latch his broken fingers onto Bakugou's arm and not let go. As a result, the villains received a buy-one-get-one free hostage deal. If Todoroki and Shoji had followed Deku's example, they might have been able to stand a chance against the numerous unfriendly faces waiting on the other side. Hell, Bakugou and Todoroki alone would've been able to torch the place in seconds. But with Bakugou being disoriented from that stupid magician's quirk and Deku having two broken arms, they weren't able to put up much of a fight. So now here they were, stuck in this shitty situation together.

"I told you not to come, Deku," Bakugou growled in a hushed tone. "Now look where we are."

"I couldn't just leave you to face them alone."

Bakugou grit his teeth. Why did shitty Deku always think that he needed to be saved? Just how weak did Deku think he was? It was like this since even before U.A., even before Deku "received" his quirk. He was always following Bakugou around like a lost puppy, except he would always act as if Bakugou was the one who needed to be rescued. It should've been the other way around. Bakugou had always been the stronger one. His quirk was superior, and no matter how many times he reminded Deku of that, his demeanor never changed. Now, his annoying habit of following him around led him straight into the lion's den, and if anything happened to him, it would be Bakugou's fault. He didn't need this unnecessary burden to weigh him down. In fact, it would be harder to escape now. Bakugou cursed under his breath.

"It seems you have trouble listening to others, Midoriya," the hand-clad leader spoke up. "I believe I warned you to be more cautious the last time we met."

Confused, Bakugou shifted his glance away from the villains to look at Deku, who was now glaring at the approaching figure.

"Shigara—"

Whatever Deku was about to say was cut off when Shigaraki placed his right hand over the boy's throat, leaving his pinky finger hovering just over his skin. The entire bar seemed to tense up all at once. Even the villains seemed unsure of what their boss was about to do.

"Didn't I say I'd kill you the next time we see each other? Maybe I should, after what you did to Muscular..."

Deku paled, eyes going wide as the gravity of the situation began to sink in. The chains wrapped around Bakugou's hands rattled as he pulled at them, but they wouldn't budge.

"Sh-Shigaraki-san…" began the lizard-like villain, who up until now had remained quiet for the most part. "You can't. He was saved by Stain. Killing him now would make his sacrifice for nothing."

"All the more reason, then," Shigaraki spat, his grip on Deku's throat tightening at the mention of his villainous rival. After a few tense seconds, he released his grip, allowing Deku a few seconds to regain his breath. "But you are right. I can't kill him. That would make us bad hosts. Wouldn't you agree, Kurogiri?"

The hazy figure standing behind the bar nodded his head. "I'd prefer not to clean up any blood tonight. I just mopped the place this morning."

A vein in Bakugou's temple began to pulse. Their ridiculous banter was beginning to irritate him, like insects in his ear. Having heard enough, he slammed his shackles into the chair, gaining everyone's attention.

"Cut the shit-chat! You villains need to learn how to get to the point. Why the hell did you kidnap us?!" he demanded.

Some of the villains took a small step back at his sudden outburst, but once again, Shigaraki looked unfazed. Slowly, he reached up and pulled the fake hand that was covering his face away. Bakugou took in Shigaraki's sunken eyes and numerous scars lining his repulsive face. _Suits his weaselly voice_ , he thought. Noticing his staring, Shigaraki grinned at Bakugou, and he decided it was the creepiest thing he'd ever seen.

"Well, we only meant to take _you_ , Katsuki Bakugou. We hadn't planned on having another guest."

"Then why target me?" he growled.

Shigaraki dragged one of the vacant barstools closer to the two prisoners and took a seat, his lanky figure looming over them. "We've been keeping an eye on you for a while now," he began. "Every one of us in here has been shackled down by this "hero" society. From the moment we are born, we are not equal. Those lucky enough to be gifted with a heroic quirk are revered by the masses, while those with malicious or lackluster quirks, or even no quirks at all, are neglected, spat on, and shunned. My merry band of misfits are on the run because many of us simply cannot fit into a world where we are constantly compared to each other based on what is decided at birth. This society simply isn't just. We want to change that. And from what we've seen from you, you aren't happy with the way things are either. Consider this an invitation to join our ranks."

Bakugou was speechless. Of all the things they could have wanted from him, whether it be his quirk, or his death, the last thing he was expecting them to be after was his cooperation.

"What makes you think Kacchan isn't happy with the way things are?" Deku asked, his voice sounding a bit shaken. He nudged Bakugou's leg with his own, and Bakugou understood. Try to get as much information out of these guys as possible.

Shigaraki scoffed at Deku. "Aren't you two classmates? I could tell something was off about your friend just from watching the footage of him at the sports festival. Are you telling me that no one else could see it?"

 _This guy is delusional_ , Bakugou thought. Did he seriously believe that he could judge Bakugou's character better than his classmates and teachers just from watching him perform for an hour? He could think of dozens of insults to throw at him, but for now he'd follow Deku's lead and play along.

"Even if I did agree that society needs a change, your methods for fixing it suck! You surround yourself with cutthroats and murderers, and repeatedly attack us students. What the hell does that accomplish?!"

"I'm glad you asked," Shigaraki responded calmly. "There are two reasons. First of all, in order to create our new social norms, we have to tear down the institutions that are perpetuating the current ones. U.A. is the top hero school in Japan, responsible for drilling these senseless ideals into the impressionable minds of young men and women such as yourselves, who then go on to become the pseudo-celebrities we call 'pro heroes'." Shigaraki's mouth curled downward as he said this, as if he'd just tasted something sour.

"And secondly, there is one man who is largely to blame for the way things stand today, and I'm sure both of you know who I mean. Sure, heroism has been a career choice for well over the last century, but heroes weren't really popularized until All Might showed up. The 'Pillar of Justice'. What a joke. The taller this pillar gets, the less grounded our society becomes. Once we topple him, this hero-worshipping culture he built will come crashing down as well. Now that he works at U.A., doing his part to corrupt the minds of our youth, well… Our target is clear."

Bakugou was seething. He tried to keep a steady expression as he held eye contact with the deranged villain, but he could feel the smoke literally pouring from his ears. Deku spared him a worried look. His childhood friend had never made it a secret that he was a fan of All Might (understatement of the century), but what people often forgot was that All Might was also the hero Bakugou admired most. Asking him to betray the number one hero was like asking Harry Potter to kill Dumbledore.

Shigaraki stood and stepped away from the bar stool, raising his arms out to his sides. "What do you think, Bakugou?" he asked. "I say you kill your heroes and fly."

The room was so silent he could feel the blood rushing past his ears. Though he didn't show it, Bakugou loved the tension he could feel emanating from the room. He loved how he could make even the most notorious villains in Japan nervous just by giving them the evil eye. He gazed up at the man who had insulted him by asking him to turn traitor and kill the only person he'd ever respected, and he laughed.

It began as a quiet, breathless laugh and ended with Bakugou hunched over in his seat, gasping for air. For the first time that night, the villains could sense the confident poise exuding from their leader starting to crumble away. His fingers scratched at his neck a bit too hard. It was a nervous tic Bakugou had noticed back when they had last seen each other at the USJ. He had clearly been expecting a different response from Bakugou. Nevertheless, he remained silent, apparently committed to getting an answer. If that was what he wanted, Bakugou would give him one. He used his shoulder to wipe away the remaining tears from his fit of laughter and returned his gaze to the man in front of him.

"You watched me on TV, and now you think you know me. Well, let me tell you something. I'm going to be the number one hero in the world some day, even surpassing All Might. He always wins, no matter what. So I can't afford to be hanging out with a buncha losers like you. It would ruin my image. So you can take your invitation and shove it."

If all Shigaraki knew about him came from the footage of the sports festival, then he would have seen him trying to lash out at All Might like a rabid dog on a chain during the medal ceremony. So it made a bit of sense for him to assume Bakugou was holding a grudge against the hero. But everyone knows what happens when one assumes things. If the villain had taken the time to really understand him, he would've known that his anger was directed towards the guy who half-assed the championship fight and gave Bakugou a hollow victory. A win not earned was as good as a loss to him.

Shigaraki wasn't pleased, to say the least. "Y-your… image? Didn't you listen to a single thing I just said?" he asked in astonishment.

Both of them let the question hang. Bakugou smirked in satisfaction as the villain scratched away at his neck, knowing full well that he was literally getting under the man's skin.

"Shigaraki-kun, if I may interrupt," a calm voice sounded from the back of the room. Suddenly, Bakugou realized that there was someone else who wasn't in the room listening in on their conversation. Deku's head tilted toward the sound as well, just as interested to learn who this newcomer was.

"Sensei?"

Sensei? Wait, did that mean the man-child in front of him was _not_ the boss here? Was this sensei person even more dangerous? The villains who had been standing between the disembodied voice and Shigaraki made way, revealing a computer screen indicating that they were on call with someone.

"It seems you are starting to realize that you may have misjudged Katsuki Bakugou here. Swaying him to our side may prove more difficult then you thought. But I'd like to remind you that you are not without options. Take, for instance, Izuku Midoriya here. We hadn't planned on being able to capture him, and yet here he is. Would you let an opportunity like this pass?"

Shigaraki seemed just as confused as Bakugou felt. If this Sensei believed Deku of all people would turn traitor, he had another thing coming. Before he could tell the man behind the screen off, Shigaraki beat him to the punch.

"Midoriya, Sensei? I'm afraid I'm not following. I have faced him before, and he's firmly resolved to be a hero. To the point where even the Hero Killer acknowledged him. I doubt convincing him to join our cause is even possible."

"Who said anything about 'convincing'?"

Whoever was on the other side of the call let the point stand, as if it cleared everything up. Bakugou turned to Deku, shooting him a confused look to which the green-haired boy just shook his head, obviously as perplexed as he was. In contrast, Shigaraki reacted almost instantly. His body froze and his eyes widened.

"Are you suggesting…? B-but why him?" he stuttered. "His quirk is similar to the one we already tried, isn't it?

Bakugou waited with bated breath for someone, _anyone_ , to reveal what was going on. He was going to actually explode if these villains kept talking in riddles.

"Tomura, who is Izuku Midoriya to All Might?" the mysterious voice pressed on.

Beside him, Deku went rigid against the chair he was tied to, and Shigaraki turned to stare at him, contemplating. Something felt off to Bakugou about the way Deku had reacted to the question. He had suspected for a while now that there was something more to his and All Might's relationship, but he didn't know what exactly. And he wasn't the only one who had figured it out either. After listening in on their private conversation at the sports festival, he knew Todoroki suspected as much about Deku as well.

"They are pupil and student, aren't they? Do you think there is something more?" Shigaraki asked.

"Yes, it appears to me that young Midoriya here is very special to All Might. I believe he is being groomed to be his successor."

Silence engulfed the room as the speaker's words sank in. Bakugou found himself staring at Deku. And the more he did, the more he knew that what they were saying could not be true. How could this small kid, whose quirk literally destroys his body when he uses it, who Bakugou was fairly certain couldn't even beat him in a fight, become All Might's successor? But then he remembered what Deku had told him about his quirk, how he had borrowed it from someone. The pieces began to fall into place like a puzzle for Bakugou. Even though he didn't want them to.

"Well, this just got interesting. I'm bored!" a masked villain leaning on the bar exclaimed.

"Wow! Who knew he'd be so important, too?" the creepy teenager next to him added, her eyes seemingly never having left Deku the entire night.

"Is that true, Midoriya?" Shigaraki approached Deku once more, leaning down so that their faces, or rather Deku's face and Shigaraki's weird hand, were only inches apart. He leaned on the arms of Deku's chair, leaving him little room to move. "Are you All Might's successor?"

Deku didn't budge and kept a steady glare pointed at Shigaraki. His eyebrows knitted in irritation. "No, I'm not," he said. "Even if All Might did need a successor, why would he choose me? My quirk is volatile. There are plenty of better candidates at U.A." Deku's words restored some of Bakugou's faith in his childhood friend, as they were exactly the same as the thoughts he was having.

"All Might's health is rapidly declining," the voice said over the speaker. "I know this because I was the one who wounded him a few years back. He became a teacher to scout out students with potential to take his place as the Symbol of Peace. And as for why he chose you, well, it's as Stain said. You have the makings of a true hero."

All Might? Wounded? Why did Bakugou feel like he was being left way out of the loop? He wanted to ask Deku what these nutcases were talking about, but stopped when he saw the color drain from his face.

"You - You're the one who wounded All Might?" Deku asked, stunned.

"Yes, and the fact that you know about his injury tells me everything I need to know. At the very least, All Might has confided in you."

"And if that's true, then you'll make an excellent hostage," Shigaraki finished for him. "Master, what do you want me to do?"

"Prep him for the operation just like we did with the others. I'll take care of the rest."

"O-operation?" Deku squeaked.

Bakugou noticed a few grimaces coming from the various villains in the room, indicating they knew what the two of them were talking about and had seen it before. The lizard-like man opened his mouth in protest. "This is not what Stain would have wanted. If you do this, I'm out."

Shigaraki regarded the man for a moment, and sighed. "Stain wanted to reform society by killing heroes. We want to reform society by killing one hero, and this is the quickest way to get to him. Stick with us or don't, I don't care. I just don't want to hear anything more about Stain from now on."

The man said nothing as he stared at the ground in deliberation. He sent a passing glance to several of the villains in the room, and lastly to Shigaraki. Shaking his head, he picked up the broken remains of his massive weapon and hefted them over his shoulder before crossing the room and taking his leave.

Unconcerned, Shigaraki turned to face the two prisoners once more. "So be it. Now then – "

"Shigaraki," the warp villain interrupted. "Is this really necessary? Sensei may not have any qualms about doing this to kids, but this is your decision."

"I know," was all their leader said.

Slowly, Shigaraki moved his hand so that it was hovering over Deku's head. _No_ , was all Bakugou could think as he remembered what their homeroom teacher's elbow looked like after facing him at the USJ. _No, no, no_. The chains rattled again, this time harder than before as Bakugou tried with all his might to pull them from their fixtures.

"Don't touch him!" he yelled.

The villain hesitated for a moment, as if unsure he wanted to continue. Soon enough, however, he began lowering his hand, and to Bakugou's horror, Deku's hair began to disintegrate, some of it falling in clumps down his body while the rest turned to dust. Deku attempted to sit lower in his seat but found himself unable to shrink any lower.

"Cut it out, you ugly bastard!" Bakugou was hysterical now. "I'll kill you!"

A shrill cry pierced the room as Shigaraki's hand made contact with the top of Deku's head. Within seconds, the skin on Deku's scalp was crumbling away. Blood trickled down his forehead as he struggled to free himself, putting even more strain on his broken arms.

"Hold still," Shigaraki commanded. "This will only take a minute."

Over Deku's cries and the rattling of his chains, Bakugou heard the sound of a door opening and closing. With a glance, he noticed several of the villains walking out, looking sickened at the display. A few seconds later the only villains left in the room were Shigaraki and the teenager, who was now leaning over the bar, head propped up by both of her hands, looking on in fascination. Bakugou called out to her in desperation, tears beginning to form in his eyes.

"Please," he begged. "Stop him."

She lifted her head up from her hands, looking to her left and right as if making sure she was being spoken to, before smiling and giving him a ditzy little wave. An intense hatred formed inside his chest and he swore that she would be the next to die right after Shigaraki.

Soon enough, the screams died down, and Deku was left gasping for breath beside him. He had been only three feet away and Bakugou hadn't been able to do a damn thing to help him.

"Heeyyy! I like the makeover, Shigaraki-san! He looks so badass now," the girl gushed. She skipped around the bar to get a closer look.

"Don't touch him, Toga," Shigaraki warned. He began making his way towards the other side of the room where the computer screen was. The girl, Toga, stuck her tongue out at him as he passed. She walked up to Deku and grinned ear to ear.

"Wooow! Is that what a brain really looks like? I've never cut someone's head open before," she enthused.

Deku's head and face were now horribly misshapen. The son of a bitch had scalped him and disintegrated the top and front half of his skull. Somehow his eyes were spared, but everything else down to his nose had been stripped away and exposed to the still air inside the bar. His head lolled, and he seemed to be fading in and out of consciousness.

"Get away from him," Bakugou seethed.

"But this is so cool! How often do you get the chance to find out what a _brain_ feels like?"

"Toga! I said not to touch him," Shigaraki called from the other side of the bar. Toga hmphed.

"Lame."

Deku suddenly broke out of his trance-like state and began gagging. Confused, Bakugou looked at Toga for an explanation, but she just shrugged. What was happening? Was he choking?

"Deku?" he asked.

To both Bakugou's and Toga's surprise, a dark substance began flowing out of Deku's mouth and swirling around him like an ominous smoke. Toga took a step back, perplexed at the sight. The strange material expanded until it completely obscured the green-haired boy from view, and when the it finally faded, Deku was gone. Bakugou blinked, gaze lingering on the empty chair beside him.

"Awww, where'd he go?" the girl pouted, echoing the thoughts racing through Bakugou's own head.

"He's with Sensei now," Shigaraki replied as he approached them.

"Darn it. I liked him. Will I get to see him again?"

"Maybe, if he survives the procedure," the hand-clad villain said ominously.

The voices became more distant as the two of them began filing out of the room the room. "Is he really going to be turned into one of _those_ things? I hate them! They don't react at all when I cut them. They're _soooo_ boring."

"This one won't be, trust me."

The bar door slammed shut, leaving Bakugou alone, dazed, not really processing anything he'd just witnessed. The image of Deku's half-dead form slowly began to fade into his memory like a polaroid picture being exposed to the air. It was a familiar image that he recognized well. How could he not? He'd seen it himself at the USJ, and it was all over the news during the Hosu incident. They were going to turn Deku into a Nomu.

* * *

It wasn't until several hours later that the fires were put out. With the hero Ragdoll missing, finding all of the victims of the gas attack proved to be difficult and time-consuming. Eventually, all the students except for Katsuki Bakugou and Izuku Midoriya were found, and the injured were transported to a nearby hospital. Search and rescue efforts for Ragdoll extended into the night and part of the next morning as well, but they proved to be fruitless. Three villains were found unconscious and arrested by the police. Statements were taken from the students who were conscious and uninjured, who were then sent home to be with their families.

Once everyone was safe and sound, the remaining pro heroes immediately met with the police to give them information about the villains that got away. Names, appearances, quirks, anything that a random passerby could use to identify one of them and notify the police. Finding the kidnapped students became the police's new number one priority.

Alerts were sent out to the general public to watch out for any of the named villains and to contact the police immediately if they were spotted. The number and size of police patrols doubled in the surrounding wards. If the perpetrators of this attack were hiding anywhere near the camp or the school, they would be found within days. Midoriya and Bakugou would be brought home safely.

However, there was another pressing issue plaguing the mind of Class 1-A's homeroom teacher as he wrapped up things at the camp. He had been observing his students carefully as he rounded them up, making sure they were all accounted for. None of them showed any of the signs he was looking for which brought him some relief. But that still didn't change the fact that the villains had known the location of their camp, and the only people who were privy to that information were the students and teachers of the U.A. hero course.

In short, one of the students or staff was a traitor who had leaked information to the League of Villains. Because of them and Aizawa's own negligence, the villains had been allowed to injure a dozen students and kidnap two of them. Aizawa would accept full responsibility for the outcome of this attack, of course, but he thought it wise not to mention anything about a traitor to the other teachers yet. He wouldn't want whoever the turncoat was to know he was on to them.

It would also be bad PR. As much as he despised the media and wanted nothing to do with it, Aizawa knew the media's response to this event would have a strong influence on the future of the Academy. They were sharks, and U.A. was currently treading in some very bloody water. It was only a matter of time before they were under fire from reporters and journalists about the attack. He could only imagine the headlines if word got out that a _teacher_ could potentially be working with villains.

So, Aizawa decided he'd keep this information to himself for now. He'd investigate potential suspects surreptitiously, starting when the next semester begins in the coming weeks. It would be rather difficult, however, to keep track of his students' actions outside of school. The traitor must have been contacting the League of Villains away from the campus. It would be too risky to do so otherwise, else they run the risk of having a student or teacher stumble in on them. He'd have to talk to Principal Nezu about finding a solution for that. It would be ideal if they could turn U.A. into a boarding school. That way he could keep a more watchful eye on them, and he'd know when any of them try to leave. The pensive professor was suddenly shaken out of his thoughts by a familiar voice.

"Shota!" called Toshinori.

He was in his weakened state, running as fast as he could with his baggy clothing slowing him down. He jogged up the steps leading to the entrance to the camp. When he reached him, he placed his hands on his knees and stooped, panting. Aizawa still wasn't quite used to seeing the Number 1 hero so bent out of shape. It felt so wrong to him. He had still been a student when All Might had been in his prime. All Might was the top hero, not just in Japan, but across the entire globe. And it wasn't even a close race either. Shota and just about all of his fellow students were awed by All Might's power. He had seemed so invincible, as if he'd never die. He would never say it to him, but it stung a little every time he was reminded that the top hero was quickly losing his strength.

"I'm sorry," All Might wheezed. "I came as soon as I heard. If I had been here, none of this would have happened. Please forgive me."

"You don't have to apologize to me," Aizawa replied. "The blame for this failure lies with the entire hero course staff, myself included. For now, we need to focus on damage control."

The emaciated man raised an eyebrow. "Damage control?"

"Yes. The public won't be too pleased to find out two students were kidnapped right under the teachers' noses. We'll have to schedule a press conference- "

"Dammit, that can wait, can't it?" Toshinori insisted. "Every second we spend placating the public, Midoriya and Bakugou could be going through hell. We should be searching for them."

"Leave that to the police. They have far more resources available to them than we do. It's not like either of our quirks would help with locating them anyways."

All Might remained quiet for a few moments. He didn't look too happy to hear those words, however true they may have been. After a while, he looked up, and Aizawa was stunned at the sheer resolve in those sunken eyes of his. All Might brought a fist up to his chest and clenched it. Right before Aizawa's eyes, the fist bulked up until it resembled All Might's usual brawny self.

"You can deal with the press," he decreed. "I simply can't sit around knowing my students are in danger. I'll do whatever I can to assist the police. And I swear on my life I will bring our students back."

* * *

 **A/N: Here we go, my first fic ever. Thank you for reading, and I would appreciate any feedback you have for me. I'll try to respond to questions in these author notes at the end of each of my chapters. I have the first few chapters of this story mapped out in my head, but I'm not sure where it will go after that. This is an AU, so it might loosely follow the original story line but with some big changes. Who knows. +10 points to whoever can find the song lyric in this chapter.**

 **I don't have much to do over winter break so expect a decent amount of updates, but when my break ends I'll hope to update once or twice a month. Stay tuned for Chapter 2! Also, I'm not completely sold on the title yet. It might change, it might not.**


	2. Theft

Izuku sputtered as he tried to expel the rest of the vile substance from his system. After a brief moment, the black tar-like matter dissipated on its own, leaving him gasping for breath on his hands and knees. His body shook as the adrenaline seeped away and the pain in his arms and head came creeping back. Blood dripped from the gaping wound on his head to the floor below, and he became acutely aware of the cold air rolling over his exposed brain, a foreign feeling that caused him to shudder. It wasn't until a few seconds later that he noticed a pair of black dress shoes planted in front of him.

"Apologies for the side effects. My warp quirk is a lot less graceful than Kurogiri's."

Izuku's breath hitched. This was the voice of the man on call with Shigaraki. The one who had injured All Might years ago. With some difficulty, Izuku pushed himself up to a kneeling position so that he'd be able to see him better. He almost wished he hadn't. All for One was a large, muscular, imposing man. He wore a clean black suit with a white dress shirt and no tie. He seemed like a stereotypical mafia boss until Izuku saw his face, or rather lack thereof. Where his nose, eyes, and ears should have been was instead mounds and mounds of scar tissue. Tubes connected to some machine were burrowed into his cheeks, which Izuku guessed must have been some form of life support. This must have been the "mortal injury" All Might had inflicted upon him during their battle years ago. The man's mouth was still intact, allowing him to breathe and speak.

Izuku looked away from the disfigured man for a moment to take in his surroundings. It seemed they were in some kind of abandoned warehouse. Wooden pallets and splintered 2x4s littered the floor of the building. An old forklift that looked like it hadn't been turned on in years stood next to a pile of crates. Trash and broken glass bottles were scattered haphazardly around the room. For a villain who dressed so cleanly, All for One sure kept a messy hideout.

The lights in the room were so dim that he almost missed it. In the corner of the room stood what looked to be a half dozen metal vats with pipes connecting each of them to a strange looking machine. He didn't know if his eyes were playing tricks on him in the low light, but he was almost sure he could see the shapes of peoples' heads sticking out of the tops of some of the vats. His eyes widened when he finally realized just what those tanks were for. Izuku's gaze slowly turned back to the man in front of him, who had been watching him curiously as he studied the room.

"Kind of homely, don't you think?" the villain asked.

Unsure if he was talking about himself or his hideout, Izuku thought it best not to answer the man's question. With great pain, he forced himself to stand up, bringing him to about eye level with the man's chest.

"W-why did you bring me here? Where is Kacchan?" he asked, hating that he sounded so scared.

"Your friend is still at the bar, safe and sound," he replied. "As for your other question, well, I simply want to return something I borrowed from you."

Izuku stared at him, confused. He'd never seen this man before in his life. What could he possibly have of his?

All for One smiled. "I see you aren't quite sure what I'm talking about. Not to worry. I'll let the good doctor explain. But first, there's something I want you to see."

The man wrapped an arm around Izuku's shoulder and placed a hand on his back, guiding him across the room towards the vats. He tried several times to get away from him, but All for One's grip was too strong. Izuku knew that his arms, mangled as they were, were at their limit. If he activated One for All now, he'd risk destroying them permanently. He'd have to use it at the right time if he was going to escape.

When they reached the tanks, All for One stopped him. "Wait here," he commanded.

The man strode over to a small control console and pressed a few buttons. There were buzzers and sirens going off in Izuku's head all telling him to take this opportunity to run and find an exit, but something stopped him. Whether it was morbid curiosity or something else, he couldn't tell.

Within seconds, Izuku could hear machinery whirring to life and the sounds of liquids rushing through the pipes on the leftmost chamber. After a moment, All for One pressed another button and the machinery ground to a halt. The door to the tank opened automatically letting out a cloud of steam, which rolled out like a fog and glided across the floor below. Izuku's heart pounded as he tried to ascertain just what was in the tank. All for One moved to the door and pulled out the occupant of the metal chamber, and to Izuku's complete and utter shock, he recognized the person immediately.

Before him was the number 32 hero Ragdoll. The poor girl, still soaking from the fluids in the tank, had been stripped of all her clothing and seemed to be unresponsive, though she appeared to be otherwise unharmed. Izuku remembered that she'd been stationed at the midway point during their test of courage, but had disappeared shortly after the villains first attacked. He internally berated himself. This whole time his mind had been so preoccupied with himself and Kacchan that he didn't even consider what might have happened to everyone else at the camp. If Ragdoll was kidnapped, could that mean the other heroes were defeated? What about his fellow classmates? Had they gotten out alive? Just who was in these other tanks? Izuku thought his heart was going to beat out of his chest as the fear of the unknown began to grip him.

He suddenly became keenly aware of the inquisitive stare All for One was giving him. Had he been thinking aloud again? Cursing under his breath, he shook himself out of his train of thought. He needed to focus on his surroundings. Izuku turned his attention back to All for One and Ragdoll, the former now carrying the latter bridal style.

"Don't worry," All for One said. "The tanks are only meant to keep them in a catatonic state. She'll wake up soon."

"W-what did you do to her?" Izuku asked timidly.

"Nothing yet. I dropped everything I was doing as soon as I heard you'd been captured." He carried the girl over to a nearby surgical table and laid her there before strapping her in. "The truth is that I've been watching her for quite some time. She is certainly unique."

As soon as All for One finished fastening the final strap, she began to stir. "Uh…" Her eyes opened for a moment and then screwed shut at the blinding light directly above her. She tried moving a hand up to shield her eyes but quickly found herself to be immobilized. Izuku reflexively took a step closer to her, afraid of what All for One was planning on doing with her.

He could certainly agree with All for One on one thing: Ragdoll was a very unique person. Her quirk was perfect for the Wild, Wild Pussycats search and rescue team. It allowed her to observe up to about 100 people at a time, ascertaining info such as their names, locations, weaknesses, and even what their quirks were. But by far the most special thing about her was her personality. Even amongst the Pussycats, known for their high energy and robust spirits, Ragdoll was the most cheerful of the bunch. Back at the camp, it seemed that she couldn't even speak without throwing out some wild gestures and poses or doing a little dance. She'd even managed, after a long day of intense training and pushing their bodies to their limits, to motivate Izuku's entire class to get off their asses and cook themselves dinner with just a few words of encouragement and an ear-to-ear smile. But now, seeing her broken down form, lying defeated and bare before All for One, Izuku could barely contain the rage he felt towards the disfigured man.

"While the Vanguard Action Squad was busy searching for Bakugou and sowing chaos amongst the students and heroes, I decided test out my new warping quirk and pop in on the action," he told Izuku. "All it took was a slight blow to the head and she was out like a light. The round trip was only a few seconds total. No one even saw me."

The girl, still attempting to regain her vision, squinted her eyes open at the huge figure towering above her. "W-who's there?" she croaked. "Tiger, is that you?"

All for One turned and Izuku met his gaze. A deep, insatiable greed was all he could see in his otherwise cold orbs, and Izuku didn't like it. A protective instinct surged within him, and he took a tentative step closer to him and Ragdoll.

"Watch closely, Midoriya."

The girl's eyes were now wide open. "Midori—"

She was cut off when All for One placed a hand over her face. Before Izuku's eyes, a dark aura began to materialize and surround the girl. A muffled cry tore from her lips, and the girl looked absolutely panic-stricken. Izuku wasn't sure what was happening, but he knew it couldn't have been pleasant. Having been in a similar situation with Shigaraki only minutes before, he knew he had to act immediately. He decided to ignore his injuries and throw all caution to the wind. Activating One for All: Full Cow, Izuku launched himself forward, winding up an uppercut Detroit Smash that would rival the one he delivered to Muscular. His fist was inches away from All for One's jaw when he was suddenly halted mid-air by an unseen force.

All for One chuckled, a sinister noise that made the hair on the back of his neck stand up. "Are you sure that's a good idea with your arms being in such a state, Midoriya?"

Suddenly, Izuku was thrown backwards. He crashed through several wooden crates and slid to a halt amidst splinters and broken glass. Dazed from the force of the blow and the pain throughout his entire body, Izuku found himself unable to find his breath, let alone get up and fight. He lay there and listened to the muffled cries of Ragdoll carry on for a few seconds longer, and then there was silence.

Soon, the sound of heavy footsteps reached his ears, growing louder and louder. All for One stood over him now, a wicked smile adorning his grotesque face.

"Izuku Midoriya," he said. "Quirk: One for All. Location: One meter Northwest. Weaknesses: Full use of quirk results in personal injury." Izuku could feel his consciousness slowly fading, exhaustion from the day's events overpowering his will to continue fighting. All for One's unhinged laughter echoed off the walls of the warehouse as darkness clouded his vision.

"This is going to be fun."

* * *

The room was quiet save for the TV sitting on the end of the bar. Bakugou had been dozing on and off throughout the night and into the next day. He knew it was a bad idea to let his guard down around the villains, but who could blame him for drifting off? The events of the previous day had been nothing short of exhausting. From sunrise to sunset, he had been made to stress train his quirk. Bakugou's arms were still sore from trying to push the limits of his explosions over and over. Then came the villain attack, where he and his classmates had been forced to fight off several notable villains despite their fatigue from training.

Apparently, the villains had each been assigned shifts to watch over him. It seemed that every time his eyes reopened, a new villain was sitting at the bar helping themselves to a drink and watching the TV. The first had been the warpy bastard who'd split his class up during the USJ attack. He'd initially attempted to make conversation with the captured student, but quickly abandoned the effort when he was met with heated silence. Next came the villain with the huge lips, who Bakugou couldn't seem to place their gender. Not that he cared. He'd blow them up either way given the chance.

The third villain was the one he detested the most, besides Shigaraki. Mr. Compress was the name, he learned. The magician from hell. Bakugou noted that he was the only one that helped himself to more than one drink. After getting relatively inebriated, he pestered Bakugou non-stop with cheap card tricks and remarks about how easy it had been to capture him. Nothing would make him shut up, no matter how many different ways Bakugou had threatened his life. The boy gave an audible sigh of relief when the next villain was finally sent in. This one was the patchwork man who had looked like he'd gotten skin grafts from a burnt corpse. Thankfully, this villain seemed much less interested in interacting with him, allowed him to catch up on some much needed sleep.

Which brought him to the present. At some point during his nap, the villains had switched out once again. The lizard man was now sitting at the bar, eyes glued to the TV screen as he sipped a glass of water. Bakugou stared at him, perplexed. He had thought this villain had left the League behind last night when Shigaraki revealed his plans for Deku. Why was he still here? Was he really that spineless that he'd changed his mind already?

Bakugou knew that if Deku was in his place, he would have been chatting non-stop with the villains all throughout the night, trying to find anything interesting he could exploit and writing it down in his own mental villain journal. Fucking nerd. Bakugou had no interest in learning anything about these losers, but this guy was giving off a much different vibe than his other captors.

As he internally debated about whether to call out to the villain, something on the TV caught his attention. It had been set to the news channel all night long, which had allowed him to receive updates on his situation. He had learned that there had been a handful of injuries during the attack, but all of the other students besides him and Deku had made it out alive. The only other person not accounted for was one of the camp trainers, Ragdoll. Unfortunately, it seemed that there were no new leads on where they were being held. But now, something new had caught his attention. The newscaster had turned it over to a reporter standing outside of a hospital. She was surrounded by several familiar faces sharing their side of the story on what happened the night before.

"And here we have Mina Ashido, a student of UA's Class 1-A, one of the classes that had been enrolled in the training camp," the reporter said. "Young lady, were you injured in last night's attack?"

Bakugou noticed just from looking at his classmate that she lacked her usual high-energy temperament. The worry was evident on her face, and he could tell by the bags under her eyes that she hadn't gotten much sleep.

The girl shook her head. "No, I was taking a remedial class in the main facility during the attack, so I never really saw any villains." Mina's voice carried across the barroom. "I can't imagine how scary it must have been for my friends who were out there fighting for their lives, and for my friends who still are. I came to the hospital because I heard a couple of them had woken up."

The reporter brought the microphone back to her own face. "That must have been a nerve-wracking experience for you. With the attack on the USJ earlier this year and now this, your class has been through two villain attacks in just one year. Do you feel that UA could have done more to ensure the safety of you and your fellow classmates?"

"Oh, um…" Mina began twiddling her thumbs, looking a bit uncomfortable at the loaded question. Bakugou's fists clenched inside his shackles. The pro heroes had taken many precautions in ensuring the location of their training camp was a secret. While it was true that their efforts hadn't been enough, asking his classmates to criticize their teachers on national TV so soon after the attack was just tactless, and Bakugou knew tactless.

The smell of smoke suddenly assaulted his nostrils. He looked down at his hands, realizing he had inadvertently set off his quirk inside the restraint. He glanced back up and realized the noise had gotten the attention of the lizard villain, who looked a bit startled for a moment, but soon turned his attention back to the TV.

"I gotta say, it's nice to see the pro heroes finally being held to a higher standard. The shit they get away with sometimes…" He let his point hang.

"This is your fault. Quit pretending it ain't," Bakugou replied, seething. "It should be your names and faces on blast up there, not UA's."

"Tch. Fair enough," the villain said, taking another sip of water. Silence once again overtook the room. After another moment, Spinner spoke up again. "You know, I really debated for a while on whether to come back here."

Bakugou was tempted to let the villain know he didn't care that he came back or why he did so, but remained silent. If the villain wanted to monologue, he'd let him monologue. It certainly saved him the trouble of asking questions. The villain continued unabated.

"I joined up with these guys 'cause I wanted to continue Stain's mission, and rid the world of all the heroes who are only in it for the fame and glory. But so far, all the League has done is attack kids and teachers, and a fucking search and rescue team. Not exactly the corrupt figureheads I was thinking of.

"Now if it was your green-haired friend chained up here, I would've made my decision to return here in a heartbeat. Even by Stain's strict standards, Izuku Midoriya has the real makings of a hero, in every sense of the word. He truly believed that, even after the kid helped capture him."

Bakugou blinked. "Endeavor took him down."

"Endeavor," the scaly villain chuckled. "Now there's someone who doesn't deserve the title of hero. No, Bakugou, that's just what was written down in the police reports. See, Endeavor didn't show up on the scene until after your classmates defeated Stain. He took all the credit because Japan's hero laws would have punished your friends for saving that Native guy's life. Now what sort of backwards legislation is that?"

Bakugou's eyebrows raised. What the hell? Deku fought the hero killer on his internship? Was he really that desperate to one-up Bakugou that he'd go so far as to break hero laws? Bakugou cursed under his breath. It was so unfair. While he'd been stuck performing useless patrols and getting stupid haircuts at Best Jeanist's dumb hero agency, Deku had been off fighting notorious villains and powering up his quirk.

"I see hearing of your friends' accomplishment pisses you off. I wonder why that is."

"Because that weakling Deku is gunning for the top hero spot and he's playing dirty to get it, but it belongs to _me_ ," Bakugou yelled. "Hell, he probably only followed me through that portal so his name would get plastered all over the media."

"You think he did this for fame?" the lizard asked, surprised. "It seemed to me that he genuinely wanted to help you."

"I don't need his help. I already told him that. I don't need _anyone's_ help."

"Is that so?" The villain asked, a disappointed look on his face. "Well, Shigaraki is probably going to kill you today if you don't come around. Good luck."

With that, the villain downed the rest of his glass of water and left it in the sink before heading for the exit. Bakugou watched him cross the room, the villain not even sending him a second glance. That was it? That was all the villain returned to say? With one foot out the door, Bakugou called to him.

"Wait."

The villain stopped, glancing back to the chained up boy with a smirk on his face. He allowed the door to slam shut and stepped back into the room, retaking his seat at the bar. He crossed his arms, patiently waiting for Bakugou to speak.

"If you're so dissatisfied with the League of Villains, and Deku isn't here, then why did you come back?"

"Hmmm, good question. To be honest, I'm not really sure," he admitted. "Maybe I just hate seeing wasted potential."

Bakugou raised his eyebrows. "Wasted potential?"

"I mean you, Bakugou. You're a talented kid. We all saw that at the Sports Festival. But if you use that talent for the wrong reasons, then you'll never become a proper hero. Hell, if this attitude of yours keeps up, where you fight only to win instead of to help people, and look down on your friends who genuinely want to do good, well… You'd have made the top of Stain's hit list pretty quickly, no doubt about it."

"If it's what motivates me to be the best hero I can be, and I save people in the process, then what's wrong with wanting to win?" Bakugou argued.

"Don't get me wrong. Having the strength to win is important for any hero. That strength is what earned All Might and Endeavor the number one and two spots. But the difference between the two of them is that if they were faced with the choice between saving someone's life and putting away a dangerous villain, All Might would always save the person in need. And Endeavor… well, he probably wouldn't. He'd rather take the heat of having someone die on his watch rather than face the shame of defeat. It's happened with him before. Just one of the reasons Stain wanted him dead."

Bakugou scoffed at the absurdity of the situation. Here he was, getting lectured by a villain on how to be a hero. He didn't need this. "Cut to the chase. Why are you telling me this?" he asked impatiently.

"Don't you see what I'm getting at?" the villain asked, nearly exasperated. "Your friend only fights to save people. And you said it yourself, you only fight to win. You'll always be second to him, unless you change something."

He pondered the villain's words. His gut feeling from earlier had been correct. This guy wasn't just a murderer with no morals like the rest of the bunch. His methods may have been a little extreme, but he really believed what he was doing would help people in the long run. Perhaps he was right, Bakugou thought. Not about the killing, but about… the rest of what he said.

"So what should I do?" he asked.

"You can start by helping out your friend. Now, I don't know where he is being held, but I do know someone who does, and she should be getting here right about…"

Bakugou could hear the sound of a key being jostled before the door to the bar swung open. A surprised gasp was all he heard before the most annoying voice he could ever imagine began to pierce his eardrums.

"Spiiiiiinnnnnnnnnnnneeeeer! You came back! Yay!" The teenager who'd been so fascinated by Deku's head last night entered the room, jumping up and down.

"...now."

Bakugou groaned. _Great. Just great._

* * *

 **A/N: Wooo! Chapter 2! Spinner is a super interesting character for me, but so far hasn't been used much in MHA. He kind of reminds me of a twisted version of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. I'm hoping to have him play a bigger role in this story. Also, I went back and corrected a super minor detail from chapter 1. Izuku broke Spinner's weapon during the fight at the Training camp, so now he's just holding onto the remains of it.**


	3. Doctor

When Midoriya awoke, the first thing he noticed was the cold feeling of steel against his head, wrists, waist, and ankles. Opening his eyes, he blinked several times, taking a moment to recognize his surroundings and remember what happened. His shirt had been removed, and he found himself lying in a reclined position on a medical table, several heavy restraints holding him down. From what he could see ahead of him, he was in close proximity to the metal tanks that Ragdoll had been held in. Said hero lay unconscious beside him, still strapped to the surgical table All for One had put her in. The villain himself was nowhere to be found. It was difficult for him to turn his head with the restraint holding him down, but out of the corner of his eye he could see a small table with a tray of surgical tools sitting directly beside him.

A creeping panic began to grow in his chest as he pieced together in his mind everything that had happened that night. Shigaraki dissolving his head and face, the strange figures standing in the metal chambers, the surgical tools sitting beside the chair he was restrained to, and the "operation" All for One had spoke of. All of it pointed to only one thing. All for One meant to turn him into a Nomu.

The color drained from his face at the realization. He was going to be turned into a mindless slave in service to the League of Villains and who knew what he was going to be used for. He wondered if he would be conscious during his enslavement but unable to control his body, or if his mind would also be taken over as well. Izuku didn't think he'd be able to bear it if he was awake while being forced to hurt people. What if they used him in another attack on U.A.? It would crush him if he hurt any of his friends. All Might or Eraserhead would be able to stop him, but how much damage would he cause before that happened? Izuku couldn't help the sob that escaped his lips as all the horrible possibilities ran through his mind.

"Midoriya?" said a voice so soft he almost missed it. He looked up once more to see Ragdoll beginning to come to, the leather straps holding her down creaking as she attempted to adjust her position. She was able to raise her head just enough to get a glimpse of him, and he saw her eyes widen at the sight.

"Ragdoll, you're awake! Are you hurt?" Izuku asked, the memory of her pained cries resurfacing in his mind.

She continued to stare at him a moment, taking in his appearance with her mouth agape. Izuku figured he must have looked like a zombie at this point what with half of his head missing and his arms wrapped up like a mummy. "That's… that's my line," she croaked.

The girl speaking to him now was so different from the one he had gotten to know over the last two days. The high energy, fun loving hero he remembered was gone. Now, all he could detect was despair in her voice, and it pained him to hear it. All for One had taken her quirk. It was hard for Izuku to imagine how it must have felt to have something like that taken away. To live your whole life with this amazing part of you and have it suddenly ripped away in an instant. Was it like losing a limb? Or was this sort of loss more profound than that?

The practical side of his mind also began thinking of the implications of All for One possessing Search. It meant he was now able to keep track of their location, even from far away. Wherever he was now, he was probably still keeping an eye on the both of them, which made escaping that much harder.

"Midoriya… Your head… What did they do to you?" the distraught girl asked. "Don't tell me…" Her head turned to face the metal vats, and her meaning was clear to Izuku. Both of them knew what they contained.

He didn't answer her question. He didn't want to say it aloud, and so silence fell between them. The boy began to think about what his mother was doing right then. She must have gotten the news already. No doubt she'd be on the phone with Mitsuki Bakugou in hysterics. And what about Kacchan? If the villains gave up on recruiting him, what would they do with him? Did the rest of the students and teachers make it out of the camp alive? Izuku was about to literally lose his mind, and he wouldn't even know the answers to any of these questions. He fought the tears that threatened to fall as hopelessness began to sink in.

Was this his punishment for tempting fate? He'd always gone against the grain, always disregarded what the world told him should and shouldn't be. They said it was impossible for him to become a hero, and yet he tried anyways. And for a while, it seemed to work. He'd gotten himself into unwinnable situations before, and yet everything seemed to work itself out in the end. Perhaps he even thought fate was on his side for a while. But now, he understood that he was confusing fate with luck. He was never destined to be a hero. He was lucky that All Might just happened to be there when he charged the sludge villain, or otherwise he would have died. He was lucky that Todoroki had shown up just in time to capture Stain, or otherwise he would have died.

But now, his luck had run out. He'd gone through the portal without a plan, just hoping that things would work out like they always do. Only this time, there were no pro heroes or classmates to jump in and save the day. He doubted anyone even knew where he was. _He_ didn't even know where he was.

"Izuku," Ragdoll called to him. He shifted his attention away from his dark thoughts and focused on her, glad for the distraction. "I saw what you did for Kota."

Kota. He thought about the small boy that had given him a swift tap in the jewels a couple days prior. It was unfortunate that he had gotten caught up in the villain attack. He couldn't imagine how terrifying it must have been for him to come face-to-face with the man who killed his parents after so many years, and nearly lose. Izuku wouldn't be surprised if the boy hated heroes even more after that whole experience. He sure hoped the kid made it out alive.

"I was going to use my quirk to find him when I noticed the fires, but when I activated it, you were already with him, defending him from Muscular," Ragdoll continued. "You must have gone to help him at the first sign of trouble. You really are a hero, you know that?"

Her words hit him like a truck. This time, Izuku couldn't hold back the tears any longer. Ragdoll would never quite understand just how much those words meant to him. Just how much he needed to hear that. It was all he had ever wanted. Since he was a child, all he had dreamed of was being able to help people in need. Now, he was glad that he'd been able to save at least one person. He got to be a hero, if only briefly. For a moment, Izuku struggled to find his words.

"Thank you," he managed at last.

The two of them sat in silence for the next few minutes, simply relishing the feeling of not being completely alone. Izuku wasn't sure what would happen to Ragdoll now that All for One had taken her quirk. With any luck, he'd let her go once his operation was over with, but he didn't seem like the type to be so benevolent.

Soon enough, a pair of voices began to echo in from the hallway. Izuku was faced away from the door, but he could tell that the heavy footsteps that strode into the room belonged to All for One. The ones behind him belonged to a smaller man, though he didn't have the slightest guess who that could be. All for One greeted him as the pair approached.

"Midoriya, normally I'd introduce you to my associate here, but I believe you two have already met."

Confused, Midoriya took in the appearance of the newcomer as he came into view. He was a short, stubby man with more hair on his upper lip than he had on the rest of his head. He wore a white lab coat and thick glasses that obscured his eyes. And Izuku recognized him instantly. He'd never forget the face of the man that first told him he was quirkless.

"Dr. Tsubasa?!"

"Hello, Izuku. It's been quite a long time," the old man said. Izuku simply stared at him, unsure as to whether he was actually seeing properly. Fortunately, the doctor seemed to pick up on his confusion.

"I'm sure you're wondering why your old pediatrician is here, of all people. I'd be surprised too. Let me try to explain the best I can," he said, pushing his glasses up his face.

"All for One and I have been working together for… oh, about ten years now. When he first introduced himself to me, he was already one of the most powerful people in Japan, with strings in numerous crime syndicates, corporations, and even the government. But he kept his identity hidden well, so I didn't know who he was at first. He told me all about his ability to stockpile and give away quirks, and he made me an offer I just couldn't refuse. In exchange for providing him info on my patients with strong or useful quirks, he'd let me choose any quirk I wanted from his collection."

Izuku glared at the man in front of him. He had never liked him for the way he matter-of-factly delivered the bombshell that his quirk would never manifest. But he always thought the man was just being brusque. It was one of the reasons his mother had switched pediatricians soon after. Now though, he was beginning to see that the doctor was not simply tactless, but rather an unfathomably selfish old man.

"You were helping All for One steal quirks from your own patients? How did you get away with it for so long?" the green haired boy asked unbelievingly.

"It was quite simple, really. It would look quite bad if a child found they couldn't use their quirk anymore after visiting my clinic, so we only targeted those whose quirks hadn't appeared yet. Most preliminary quirk tests can generally identify what a child's quirk will be when it manifests. If I happened upon a quirk that All for One would find useful, I'd alert him right away. And after he had taken the quirk, I would then explain to the parents that their child was quirkless. To help sell it, I always had a copy of an X-ray ready to go displaying one of my old patient's double-jointed pinky toes, which is an indicator that the patient does not possess a quirk. Sound familiar?"

Yes, it sounded all too familiar. Izuku had only been a four-year-old at the time, but that day was still one of his most vivid memories to date. The day the doctor had told him he was quirkless and shown him his x-rays as proof. He and his mom had searched the internet for hours to see if there was anything that could prove the doctor wrong. But all the research they found only supported the doctor's assertions. It seemed having two joints in the pinky toe really meant he wouldn't develop a quirk. He had, however, never considered the possibility that the x-ray he'd been shown _wasn't actually his_. If that was the case, then…

The words came out slowly as Izuku pieced together the doctor's implications. "So… Those weren't my x-rays? You just pasted my name over them?"

The doctor nodded. "Now you're catching on."

"T-then… what you're saying is… I h-had a quirk?"

Izuku wasn't sure what the doctor was going to say. He wasn't even positive he wanted to know the answer. Being quirkless had done a number on his self-esteem and resulted in a lonely childhood, but Izuku had accepted that a long time ago. It became a part of who he was. And when All Might offered him One for All, it had felt _earned_. Because despite his massive setbacks, he pushed himself every day to study hard and never give up hope. Even when both his favorite hero and his own mother had told him his dream wasn't realistic, he had still worked much harder than others for the opportunity to become a hero. It was the one thing he prided himself on.

But if what he was being told was true, then if he had gone to a different pediatrician that day, he would have grown up with his own quirk. A quirk that was apparently useful even to the likes of a supervillain like All for One. He would have fit in with his classmates and maybe had a decent social life before going to high school. Of course, he also might have never met his idol and took on the role of his successor. Izuku wasn't really sure how to feel about that. He decided it didn't really matter at this point. The past couldn't be changed.

The doctor nodded his head once more. "Indeed, you had a quirk. Quite a powerful one, too. It's a composite quirk, a mix of both your parents' quirks. Your mother could pull things towards her, yes?"

Before Izuku could say anything, several objects in the room began to levitate. Stunned, he watched a chair hurdle past his face, just barely missing his cheek. Ragdoll, who had remained silent since the doctor had entered the room, gasped in surprise as her table began floating up a few inches.

All for One cleared his throat. "Telekinesis. An incredibly rare quirk. From what the doctor told me, your mother could pull things towards her, as if they were attached to a rope. Your quirk, on the other hand, allows full control of movement over all three axes. However, its power is quite limited. It seems I can only exert about as much force as I'd normally be able to if I were using my own physical strength. Trying to use more power than I'm capable of ends up giving me the worst headache." The various floating objects in the room fell to the floor as All for One brought a hand up to his temple, rubbing circles around it.

"And as for your father," the doctor continued. "He was a fire breather."

All for One opened his mouth again, only this time instead of words, a white-hot stream of fire was emitted. Izuku watched as the chair that had flown past his face was turned into a pile of ash in a matter of seconds.

"I admit, I only ever used that side of the quirk to burn some old documents," said All for One. "Still though, it came with the package, and I'm never one to turn down an extra ability. Overall, your quirk has proven most useful to me, and I am quite loath to part with it."

All for One laughed at Izuku's look of surprise, a deep, throaty noise that sounded almost like coughing. "I did tell you I'd be returning something I borrowed, yes? Tell me, how did you think I knew about your relation to All Might? I didn't recognize you at first when the sports festival started, but after you won the first round and your name had been announced, it all came back to me. I stole your quirk. You should have been quirkless, yet there you were at the top of the scoreboards, destroying _glaciers_ with a flick of your finger."

The disfigured man licked his lips, salivating at the thought of such power. "It's All Might's power, no doubt about it," he continued. "The fact that you showed up with a quirk the very same year he began teaching at U.A. basically confirms it. It is the one quirk I have ever come across that I could not take for my own. It is the counterpart to mine, the opposite. It just… repels me, I suppose." All for One walked around Izuku so that he was standing behind him. "I may not be able to control One for All, but I can control _you._ "

A chill traveled down Izuku's spine at the way he had said that. Up until now, the villain had been talking about Izuku's quirk as if it were just a toy he borrowed from him, and not something so significant to him that taking it would change the course of his life. But now, he wasn't talking about quirks anymore. Now it was his freedom that he was waving around like a piece of property.

A heavy hand slapped down on Izuku's shoulder, making him flinch. "I'll let the doctor finish explaining what's going to happen to you. Come find me when you're done, Tsubasa."

With that, All for One strode over to the table opposite Izuku's where Ragdoll lay, her face contorted in barely contained rage. "How could you do that to a child?" she spat.

All for One chuckled. "How? Well, it was much easier than taking _your_ quirk, my dear."

He began undoing the straps holding her down, and within seconds, Ragdoll was freed from her restraints, though it was short-lived. She attempted to strike him across the face, but All for One immediately caught her hand and dragged her back kicking and screaming to the metal chamber she'd emerged from. In one fluid motion, he threw her inside and slammed the door, locking it shut behind him. He ignored the sound of the hero's fists pounding on the door as he walked back over to the control console. The machine began to whir back to life and within a moment, the banging stopped. Satisfied with his work, All for One turned and casually made for the door, slamming it shut behind him without even a second glance.

Izuku released a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding. All for One sort of reminded him of Stain with the way he carried himself. You could feel the sheer power and determination rolling off them in waves just by being in their presence. The short, pudgy man in front of him now didn't seem nearly as imposing as All for One, though Izuku could sense there was still something off about him.

The doctor seemed to stare right through Izuku as he sat there, pondering. Feeling uncomfortable, Izuku decided he'd be the first to speak. The longer he could delay their plans, the better, and he might just get some information out of this guy.

"What quirk did you take?" he asked. The doctor's eyebrows rose, and his gaze refocused on Izuku. "From All for One, I mean."

"Oh, yes," the doctor remembered his story from earlier, one he seemed too eager to tell. "I chose his winged quirk. But not for me. As a matter of fact, it was for my grandson." The old man's lips curved into a fond smile as his eyes again lost focus, a sweet memory playing out in his mind.

"You see, my wonderful grandson was born quirkless. _Actually quirkless_ , mind you. A very rare thing for children of your generation. He wasn't the most athletic of boys; nor was he very social, and combined with his lack of a quirk, he always had a hard time making friends. The poor boy just wanted to be a well-loved hero like the rest of his classmates. So, when All for One asked me for my cooperation, I accepted. In return, I asked him to bestow my grandson with his winged quirk. You should have seen the look on his face when he flew for the first time. It was a priceless moment that I wouldn't trade for anything in the world."

The winged quirk. Izuku remembered it a little too well. The boy was one of Kacchan's groupies during elementary and middle school. He'd been a real prick to Izuku back then. Whenever they got in their occasional schoolyard fights, he'd always help hold Izuku down while Kacchan punched him and burned him with his quirk. He became an even bigger bully in middle school, sometimes picking on him even when Kacchan wasn't around. If he remembered correctly, the boy had also wanted to enroll in U.A., but he was nowhere to be found during the entrance exam.

 _A flash of fire danced across his vision. He was being lifted higher and higher. Suddenly, the creature seized up, and he was falling._

Izuku gasped as the memories surged across his mind. "Oh… oh god. The winged Nomu… in Hosu…" he stammered. If the doctor really was helping All for One create Nomus, then they would have needed test subjects. One of the Nomus they had created had a winged quirk, and it had gone straight for Izuku out of a whole crowd when it was unleashed in Hosu. That had to be a coincidence. Someone else who happened to have a winged quirk and a connection to All for One. The doctor clearly loved his grandson. He wouldn't do that to him, right?

The old man in front of him frowned. "I see you've made the connection already. Yes, that was my grandson. A disappointment through and through. After All for One's generous gift, I warned him that if he didn't make the most of it, I'd be signing him up for our research program here. Imagine my surprise when I found out he didn't even have the grades to take U.A.'s entrance exam! Here I found out he'd been slacking off in class and bothering the other kids while he should have been studying."

The calm demeanor in the doctor shifted. He began pacing and talking faster, becoming more and more agitated. "The boy never took my advice, never listened to me. I only wanted him to succeed, but he lacked discipline. And so, I volunteered him for our Nomu program."

Izuku swallowed, horrified. This man was insane. He had killed his grandson for what amounted to doing poorly in school. Izuku had never particularly liked the boy, but he didn't deserve that fate.

The doctor continued, his story becoming more and more twisted. "The goal of our research is to create programmable people. People that can be assigned directives while also having the intellectual capacity to decide how best to carry them out. I was hoping that our research would allow me to reign in my grandson a bit and return some semblance of control to his life. However, the results have only been disappointing so far. Because of my failure, the boy was turned into a mindless simpleton only capable of carrying out simple tasks, like picking up this box, or moving to this location."

"Or attacking this city," Izuku interjected, hinting at the destruction the winged Nomu had caused during the Hosu incident.

The doctor stopped his pacing and turned to glare at Izuku. Several tense seconds went by, the doctor's face going redder and redder.

"Don't. Interrupt." The hair on the back of his neck rose at the threatening tone of the doctor's voice. He wasn't sure what the man's quirk was, but he knew he didn't want to find out.

"Sorry," he breathed.

The doctor pushed up his glasses and took a second to regain his train of thought. "Back to what I was saying. Our Nomu can perform simple tasks but they lack the intelligence to carry them out in an efficient way. Take the one we sent to the USJ, for instance. If it had the ability to target All Might's injury, perhaps it would have gotten the upper hand on him. That's the kind of critical thinking we're hoping to achieve with our next round of Nomu testing. And today," the doctor paused, a grin forming on his face.

"Today, you have the honor of piloting those tests, Midoriya."


	4. I Want to Be Like You

The automatic doors slid open for Ochaco as she rushed into the lobby. The place was busy, far too busy for a Tuesday morning. As she made her way to the front desk, she recognized a few of her classmates' family members sitting in the lobby seats, worried expressions on their faces as they either flipped through magazines, watched the news on TV, or simply sat idle. Ochaco had been sent here a couple nights ago to get her arm looked at after the attack. She'd received a small knife wound from one of the villains, the crazy blond one who'd been obsessed with blood. A shiver went down her spine as she remembered what the girl had said while she restrained her.

' _You're thinking you wanna be just like him.'_

She had spoken as if she knew her. As if they weren't enemies and were just two normal high school girls talking about their crushes. It felt weird being compared to someone like that. The girl was wrong, of course. She had to be. They weren't similar at all. But then why did her words keep coming back to bother her?

She shook the troubling thoughts from her head and sighed. To be honest with herself, she sort of wished she hadn't been discharged from the hospital so quickly. She thought it would have been better for her to have stayed here overnight with her friends, the people she had fought beside. Her parents were wonderful people of course, and they always knew just how to comfort her and make her feel safe, but they just didn't understand everything she'd been feeling. Not like her classmates would've. Her peers had struggled with the same horrors that night, after all. The terror that the villains instilled in the dark, flaming woods, splitting them up once again just as they had at the USJ. The fear of being alone, separated into small groups and not knowing where everyone else was or where to go. And afterwards, the crushing sadness upon seeing all of her wounded classmates and teachers being taken to the hospital.

However, all of those emotions combined couldn't even compare to the absolute dread that filled the pit of her stomach every time she remembered they were two classmates short. Deku and Bakugou were still out there at the mercy of the villains. Still fighting for their lives. Despite how exhausted she'd been after surviving the attack, she hadn't been able to sleep at all last night. Images kept filling her mind, horrible images of what the villains might have been doing to them. Deku and her had become quite close over the first year of hero training, and although she didn't care for Bakugou's attitude, she would sell her soul to have them both back alive and unharmed.

"Hello," the lady behind the desk greeted her. "Are you here for a visit?"

Ochaco blinked, not realizing at first that she had already made it to the front desk. "Yes, I'm here to see one of my classmates. I heard she woke up recently. Her name is Momo Yaoyorozu."

The lady gave her the directions to her room, and soon enough she was heading up the elevator towards her fellow student. She hadn't seen Momo at all after the villains had attacked that night, but she heard the girl had suffered a pretty bad head injury. Ochaco had thought it a good idea to come visit her now that she was awake, but really she was just looking for any excuse to see her classmates again. Sitting around at home wondering what Deku and Bakugou were going through was a mental snare she didn't want to step into right now.

 _Take the elevator to the 2_ _nd_ _floor. Then right, left, right._ She repeated the directions over and over in her head, hoping not to get lost in the maze of hospital rooms and lounges. Turning onto what she thought was the correct hallway, she began to check the room numbers plastered on each door. _Room 252, room 252, room 252. Ah, there it is._ She strode up to the wooden door and just as she was about to knock, a stern, agitated voice carried through the wood. Stopping in her tracks, she put an ear up to the door in an attempt to discern whatever it was the speaker was so upset about.

"Not only is it dangerous, it's illegal! As class president, I strongly oppose this suicide mission and I don't want to hear anyone breathe another word of it!"

The knob suddenly turned, and Ochaco jumped back just in time to narrowly avoid getting clocked in the schnauze. In the door frame stood a very irate, very tired looking Iida. His eyebrows rose in surprise and he halted immediately to avoid bumping into her.

"Oh, Uraraka. I see you've received my message," he said stiffly.

Along with Deku, Iida had been another classmate that she had befriended over the school year. She had been drawn to his impressive diligence and willingness to step up and act as a leader in times of crisis. During the votes for their class's government, Deku had been the obvious choice for her, but that was only because he had saved her during the entrance exam and she didn't really know anyone else. But when she saw Iida get the lunch stampede under control during the false alarm, she knew Deku made the right choice in relinquishing the class presidency. Ever since then, she had made an effort to support the both of them whenever she could, and they had become fast friends ever since.

Despite their closeness, Ochaco couldn't help but notice the rigidity in his body language as he stood before her. It was as if he expected her to try something funny the moment his back was turned. She decided she'd let it go for now. He was clearly stressed about something (they all were, really) and people dealt with that in different ways.

"Uh... yeah," she stammered. "Is she in here?"

Iida opened the door the rest of the way and stepped to the side, gesturing for her to enter the room. Following his lead, she stepped through the doorway and looked around. Much to her surprise, most of Class 1-A was already there. They stood in a circle huddled around Yaoyorozu, who was lying in the hospital bed, bandages wrapped around her head. The first thing Uraraka noted was the suffocating tension lingering in the room. Not one person was speaking. _Just what had Iida been yelling about_?

"Excuse me," Iida broke the silence. He pushed up his glasses. "I need some fresh air. The rest of you, please think about what I said."

With that, Iida stormed out of the room, making sure to close the door softly so as to not disturb the other hospital patients. Ochaco snorted at his bizarre antics. Even in a rage, he still kept his manners about him. Shaking her head, she turned back to her fellow classmates, unsure of whether to greet Momo or ask what the hell was going on. Fortunately or unfortunately, it seemed she didn't have to say anything, as another one of her classmates spoke up.

"Jackass," Kirishima said under his breath, his fists curled up into balls.

"He isn't wrong, though," Tsuyu spoke up. "Leave it to the pros. We'd only make things worse."

The redhead turned on her, looking ready to argue, but not before Ochaco interrupted.

"Can someone please fill me in? What's going on?"

The response she received was silence. Whether it was because no one wanted to reveal their feelings on the matter, or because they didn't know what side they were on themselves, the fact still remained that nobody wanted to be the first to speak up. After what felt like a millenium, the bandaged girl whom Uraraka had come to see sat up in her bed.

"When the villains attacked the training camp, I had Yosetsu use his quirk to attach a tracking chip to the back of the Nomu they'd brought with them," said Yaoyorozu. "When All Might visited the hospital earlier today, I gave him a receiver so he could track the Nomu's location. But what I didn't tell him was that I made another receiver for myself."

She leaned forward and stuck her hand into the pillow case she'd been resting against before fishing out a small, handheld device with an antenna sticking out of it.

"This gadget tells me exactly where the Nomu is located now. I've been monitoring it for a while, and it hasn't moved since I woke up a few hours ago, so it's likely being stored there. That means there is a distinct possibility that this is the villains' hideout, and that Midoriya and Bakugou are both being held here."

Ochaco was stunned. A flood of emotions swept through her head all at once. Nervousness, excitement, anxiety, hope. It was all she could do to stop herself from tackling their vice president in a bear hug. In the beginning of the year, Momo had had a fair share of confidence problems and was always hesitant to make spur of the moment decisions. Now, it seemed her ability to think on the fly had improved immensely. However, something of what she'd just said bothered the chestnut-haired girl.

"Wait. Did you say All Might has a receiver?" Momo nodded, allowing Ochaco to continue her train of thought. "Then… the pro heroes know where Deku and Bakugou are. So, why…" she trailed off, already knowing the answer to her unspoken question.

"Haven't they busted them out yet?" Kirishima finished for her. Ochaco nodded glumly.

She understood, of course. Deku and Bakugou's kidnapping was an extremely delicate situation. Attacking at the wrong time, and with so little information, could easily end in disaster. They didn't even know if Deku and Bakugou were at the same facility as the Nomu they'd been tracking. For all they knew, the villains could have multiple hideouts, and attacking one of them would alert the others and put her friends in an even worse situation. The pro heroes hadn't struck yet because they simply did not have enough information.

Despite how sound her logic was, she still felt uneasy about the pros' decision to not attack immediately. Every minute that went by, her two classmates could have been going through hell. Part of her believed that the sooner they acted, the better. Time was a factor here. And the longer it took to rescue the two of them, the less likely it was that they would come back unscathed, if they hadn't been hurt or killed already.

"That's what we were just discussing," Momo said. She looked down at her hands, fidgeting with the receiving device. "There are a few people in here that feel that we should be taking matters into our own hands and doing something to help Midoriya and Bakugou. I… I feel the same way. That's why I made another receiver."

Tsu crossed her arms, looking displeased. "I say it's a bad idea. We're still inexperienced in rescues. If you interfere in the pros' investigation, there's a big chance you'll ruin their plan. That would only make things worse for those two."

Ocacho gave Tsu a single nod. The girl brought up an important point, and it matched with her earlier train of thought. "Tsu is right," she said. "We don't even know if Deku and Bakugou are being held at the same place as the Nomu. There are way too many ways for this to go wrong."

Kirishima screwed his eyes shut. "I know she's right. I know," he muttered irritably. "But I-I can't just sit around and do nothing like I did during the training camp attack. I have to help them, because I know they wouldn't hesitate to do the same for us if our positions were reversed."

His eyes met her's, and she was stunned by the determination she found in them. "Aren't you a close friend of Midoriya's? Don't you feel the same way as me?"

She hesitated in answering. On one hand, she knew it would be an irrational, dangerous, reckless, and _illegal_ decision to go after Deku and Bakugou. But on the other, she knew the red-haired boy was true. There wasn't a single parallel universe in which Deku wouldn't try to save her if she'd been captured. The words of the blonde psychopath she'd met in the woods came back to haunt her again, sending a shiver down her spine.

It was true. She did want to be like Deku.

Her fists clenched, and she looked Kirishima in the eye. "I do. I want to help them as soon as possible."

The class was silent. Ochaco scanned the room, wondering what the rest of her classmates thought about her decision. It might have been irresponsible, but at that moment, she didn't care. Even if the entire class was against it, she'd still go. She noticed movement out of the corner of her eye, and a certain half-white half-red haired boy stepped out of the crowd of her classmates.

"I want to go as well," Todoroki spoke to the class. "When Midoriya followed Bakugou through the portal, I froze. They needed me, but I was too afraid to move. I let Midoriya go after him alone and injured. Now I owe it to him to try and get him out of there. Please, allow me to come with you."

A big, toothy grin overtook Kirishima's face. He raised his fist and held it in front of Todoroki, to which the icy-hot boy returned the fist bump. From another side of the room, Ochaco could hear someone clearing their voice. It was Tokoyami.

"Dark Shadow and I caused a lot of trouble for Midoriya the night of the attack. We'd like to make it up to him, if you'd have us."

"Of course, bro!" the spiky red-head replied, performing the same gesture to Tokoyami as he did for Todoroki. The bird-like boy stared blankly at the fist for a moment before awkwardly raising his own and meeting it.

A grunt sounded to the left of Ochaco, and she turned to see an irritated look on the usually calm Shoji. "Todoroki."

All eyes in the room turned to look at the gentle giant, but his were only focused on one boy. He grew a mouth on one of his arms and raised it high to make it easier to project his voice.

"I was there as well when Midoriya went through the portal after Bakugou. At the risk of sounding cruel, I have to say this. Midoriya's decision to follow the villains was thoughtless and irrational, and it was his own. You had no obligation to follow him. By going through the portal in the state he was in, he was diving headfirst into the lion's den blind and defenseless. There was no need to drag you into it as well. It's a good thing that you didn't go, or we'd have three classmates missing."

There were several nods of agreement, though Ochaco could feel the tensions in the room rising once more. Kirishima looked particularly heated. He pointed at Shoji, frowning.

"So, what? You're saying that just because Midoriya made the wrong spur-of-the-moment decision, we shouldn't try to help him? Are we just supposed to let the lions tear him apart while we wait outside? What sort of heroes does that make us?"

His voice grew louder and louder with each question to the point where it seemed that he was addressing the entire class. Ochaco knew he was trying to be inspirational and meant well, but she feared a confrontation was about to break out. He had essentially called the rest of them cowards.

Shoji spoke again. "Forgive me, perhaps that came out wrong. I don't mean to say we shouldn't try to help him, although my thoughts on that are a different matter altogether. I only meant to say to Todoroki that he doesn't owe Midoriya or Bakugou anything. If he chooses to help them, it should be because he _wants_ to, not because he feels that he owes them a debt."

Todoroki stared ahead at Shoji, pondering the mutant's words. "I… I still want to help them. Midoriya is my… friend. And I may not know Bakugou as well as I do Midoriya, but he's still my classmate, and I want to help him too."

A knock sounded at the door behind Ochaco, and she turned to see the doctor's head sticking into the room. "Sorry to interrupt, but I need to go over the results of Ms. Yaoyorozu's CT scan now."

With that, most of the students began filing out of the room, sending sideways glances to the few who were staying, namely Ochaco, Todoroki, Tokoyami, Kirishima, and, of course, Yaoyorozu.

"If we're doing this, it has to be tonight," Kirishima asserted quietly. "If you're in, let's meet at the front of the hospital by the fountain at 9:00. Are we all agreed?"

With nods all around (though Tokoyami looked a bit concerned about conducting the operation at night), the four students began to vacate the room, passing the doctor on the way out. Ochaco put a hand up to her head and absentmindedly began running her fingers through her hair. Just what had she gotten herself into?

* * *

With a satisfying _clank_ , the heavy restraint fell to the floor where it rattled against the hardwood and then lay still. Bakugou took a moment to rub his hands, relishing the feeling of the open air against his skin. Shakily, he rose from the chair, wincing at the stiffness of his muscles. Without taking his eyes off the villains in front of him, he began to perform some stretches, feeling relief wash over his body as he did so. Spinner tossed the key across the bar, no longer having need of it.

"Technically, I was only supposed to use that if you had to go to the bathroom or something, but hey, circumstances change."

Bakugou grunted his appreciation before finishing his stretches. He clapped his hands together, setting off a number of firecracker explosions. Spinner watched him warily, evidently not fully trusting him yet, which was smart. Toga just looked on in fascination.

It had been surprisingly easy to convince the deranged girl to help rescue Deku. For some reason that Bakugou couldn't fathom, she seemed to have some sort of sadistic fascination with his green haired rival. Maybe it was because Deku was so easy to beat up, which he supposed he could understand. Either way, she claimed she wanted to stop Deku from being turned into a Nomu almost as much as he did. For now, he'd use that to his advantage.

"The hell are we standing here for?" he asked before turning to Toga. "You know where Deku is, right?"

She nodded enthusiastically. "Yep! Where we keep our Nomu. Tomura took me there once to let me practice my knife skills on one that could regenerate."

Bakugou blinked, making a mental note to stay two arm's lengths away from her at all times. He enjoyed having his skin on his body, thank you very much. "Okay, then take me there," he deadpanned.

"Hold up, we need a plan first," Spinner said, holding an arm out to stop them. "Our faces have been plastered all over the national news since the attack. Even yours, Bakugou. We need to figure out how to get there without being recognized."

Bakugou cursed under his breath. He'd forgotten about that little fact. He'd been practically forced to watch the news all night, and his face had been shown next to Deku's dozens of times. Heroes and police would be actively searching the streets for him, and pretty much any citizen who owned a TV would recognize his face. He couldn't afford to be seen, or else he'd blow his one chance at figuring out where Deku is.

"Toga's quirk will keep her hidden, and a simple disguise could work for you," the lizard said, deep in thought. "But even if I had a disguise, I'd still be too recognizable. People would identify me as soon as I step out of this building. Sorry, but I think you two are going to have to do this on your own."

Bakugou rolled his eyes. Being left alone with the creepy girl was the last thing in the world he would have wanted. He despised her with every fiber of his being for the way she simply watched as Shigaraki turned his friend's skull into a pile of dust. And that meant he did not trust her in the slightest. Was he just supposed to take her word that she wanted to help Deku? Bakugou knew he could very well be walking into a trap right now, but he didn't really see any other options at the moment.

"Fine," Bakugou relented. "But there's something I have to do before we leave."

Confused, the two villains exchanged nervous glances as the boy strode up to the bar and grabbed a stool. With a war cry, he lifted it over his head and chucked it over the bar and into the shelves. Alcohol and glass bottles rained down onto the floor. Bakugou grinned in satisfaction, but he wasn't done yet. Next, he hefted up the TV and, using his quirk to add more power to the movement, launched it towards the computer screen that the villain boss had been speaking through. Both objects promptly shattered, hundreds of dollars of electronics destroyed in an instant. The explosive student continued his rampage, knocking over tables and chairs until the bar was virtually unrecognizable.

Bakugou grinned like a maniac. _This_ is what his quirk was meant for. He took a step forward to ensure he didn't miss anything, hearing the satisfying crunch of broken glass beneath his feet. He glanced down to see what kind of bottle he stepped on but froze in surprise.

Slowly, he moved his foot to the side and stooped down to examine the object beneath it. Picking it up and shaking the dust off of it, he realized it wasn't an alcohol bottle, but actually a picture frame. He flipped it over and brought it closer to his face, trying to make out what it was through the spiderweb cracks on the glass and the dust permeating the dim room.

There was a figure. A large figure, wearing a white shirt with an expensive looking grey vest. His hands and face seemed to have no form save for a pair of dark black orbs floating somewhere in the mist. He realized they were eyes. This was Kurogiri, Bakugou had no doubt about it. But he lacked the telltale black mist that gave him his name. Instead, a white fog gave him a ghostly form as it emanated out the holes of his shirt.

He looked… happier in this picture. A beautiful woman sat beside him on the bench, leaning on his shoulder and nursing a sleeping infant in her arms. When looking closer at the background, Bakugou realized that they were sitting right in front of the bar. Had they just opened the place? Kurogiri's face may have been immaterial, but Bakugou could see the joy welled up in his eyes. It reminded him nothing of the sinister villain who had tried to kill them all at the USJ.

Spinner let out a low whistle, examining the extent of the damage Bakugou had caused. "Good thinking," he said. "Make it look like there was a struggle so it doesn't seem like we're betraying the League. Smart."

Bakugou blinked and set the photo back down on the floor. "Uh, yeah… That's why I did it. Right."

"Are we ready to go, then?" said an unfamiliar voice from right beside him.

Bakugou turned his head and nearly jumped out of his skin when he came face to face with a complete stranger. It was a guy about his age, with dark circles under his eyes and a miserable expression upon his face. His medium length black hair poked out from underneath his beanie, and he wore a pair of baggy jeans and a shirt that looked like it was bought at a death metal concert. Bakugou quickly backed away, wondering when this guy had gotten in here.

"Relax," Spinner told him. "That's her quirk. She can make herself look and sound like other people."

His confused expression was met with amusement from the lizard-villain, and after a moment, Bakugou realized he was talking about Toga. He gaped incredulously at the boy (girl?) standing in front of him, but when he got closer, he found he could still see the mischievous glint in her eyes.

"Fucking creepy," Bakugou exhaled with an irritated sigh. Great, now he'd never be able to sleep again. She could literally be anyone at anytime, and he wouldn't be able to tell the difference.

A thought occurred to him. "What about me? Where's my disguise?"

Both villains frowned and scanned the ruined bar, as if hoping an answer would make itself apparent to them. Spinner scratched at the back of his neck. "Good question."

Bakugou found himself growing impatient. Clearly, his "captors" weren't the best at planning. He guessed the only reason their attack on the training camp went off without a hitch was because their leader had planned it. Suddenly, he started to realize all the flaws in this mission of theirs. Even if they did somehow make it to Deku without being seen, how the hell were they going to bust him out? Wasn't their leader there, supposedly the strongest among them? Why had he agreed to this?

"Oh, I know!" Toga said with enthusiasm that didn't match her current appearance. "There's a really awesome Donki shop downtown. I'll go buy you something real quick!"

The depressed looking teen took off skipping towards the door, her baggy jeans beginning to fall off her waist. Bakugou would've laughed at the comical display if he hadn't been so pissed off with the current situation.

Spinner moved to intercept her. "Toga, wai-"

But the door had already slammed shut, leaving the two of them alone in the destroyed bar room. Bakugou felt his fingers twitch, the smell of burnt nitroglycerin still wafting through the air. He wanted to keep breaking shit. He wanted to fight someone. He wanted to rescue Deku, if only to beat his ass one more time.

It wasn't fair. _He_ was the one the villains had been after. _He_ was the one who had let his guard down. _He_ was the one who had been captured without putting up much of a fight. So why was Deku the one being punished right now? What the hell had he done to deserve such brutal treatment? Bakugou once again glanced at the bloodstained floor where Deku had been sitting. He could still hear his twisted, agonized screams as Shigaraki brought his hand down upon his head. In the reflection of a broken glass bottle, he could see his friend's deformed face, half-dead eyes fluttering as he drifted in and out of consciousness.

Shigaraki would die for that.

Spinner pulled up one of his sleeves and glanced at his watch. "She should have enough time. The next rotation isn't for another hour and a half."

The boy nodded but remained silent. It didn't matter either way for him. He felt sorry for the next villain that walked through that door.

"I'd suggest taking a seat since we might be here a while, but… well…" Spinner gestured to the all the bits and pieces of furniture scattered around the room, not a single piece left intact. Bakugou chose to lean up against the wall, Spinner wiping off part of the bar and taking a seat on top of it.

They remained silent for a while. Neither of them were really great conversationalists, and that suited him just fine. He thought back to their conversation earlier, about how Spinner had likened him to Endeavor and Deku to All Might. He scowled. There was that comparison again. Shigaraki had said something about Deku being All Might's heir or some shit like that. At first, he thought the villain had just been batshit crazy. There was no way that runt could ever shape up into a hero the likes of All Might. Not when every punch and kick he threw put him out of commission.

But the look on Deku's face when he'd been accused made him hesitate. He'd looked like a deer caught in headlights. Like his deepest, darkest secret had just been spilled onto the floor for everyone to see. Why would he panic like that if it didn't have an ounce of truth to it?

Bakugou crossed his arms, his eyes narrowing in annoyance.

Deku certainly had some explaining to do once Bakugou got him out.


	5. Clash in Kamino

Iida tapped his foot impatiently, watching the sliding automatic doors open and close as shoppers went about their nights. With every stranger that passed through those doors, his irritation grew and grew.

"What is taking them so damn long?" he complained.

He had joined his classmates' little rescue team on the condition that they would retreat at the first sign of trouble. He learned well enough during his encounter with Stain that fighting villains without the proper license wasn't tolerated by law enforcement. It had been a real close call, but the police had been kind enough to offer a solution that would keep his record from being, well, stained. But now here he was again about to violate the same exact laws. Sure, the situation was a bit different, but if fighting a villain had those kinds of legal repercussions, he couldn't imagine breaking into their headquarters was perfectly legal either.

On the bench beside him, Kirishima shrugged. "You know how girls are."

It had been Yaoyorozu's idea. Kamino was jam packed with strip malls, designer stores, and fashion boutiques. As the group passed store after store, Iida couldn't help but notice his vice president eyeing the items on display in the front windows. As they passed by a particularly large thrift shop, she had called for them to stop and explained that they would all need disguises for this mission.

It wasn't a bad idea by any means. The villains had seen most of them at the training camp, so they'd most likely be able to recognize their faces in a heartbeat. It wouldn't do to be discovered before they even made it to the tracker's location. However, this was about as far as Iida agreed with Yaoyorozu. Todoroki had argued that it would have been easier to simply step out of sight from the public, have Yaoyorozu use her quirk to whip up a few disguises, and be on their way with no time lost. It seemed the girl had other plans though. She argued that she couldn't just use her quirk to create every single thing she needed because it would hurt the economy.

While the others seemed to buy it, Iida was bothered by her logic for several reasons. A) She had never allowed that reasoning to stop her from using her quirk to create such things in the past. B) One person creating everything she needs wasn't going to impact the economy in any significant way. C) They were kind of in a rush. Bakugou and Midoriya were in peril. This was no time for a shopping trip. Regardless, here he was, standing outside of a store he'd never been to in an unfamiliar city wearing the most ridiculous outfit he had ever seen. The only thing that saved him the embarrassment was the fact that Tokoyami, Todoroki, and Kirishima all looked just as absurd as he did. Scratch that, _everyone_ in this city seemed to have forgotten how to dress properly.

Having enough, Iida stamped his foot. "That's it. You three wait here," he told his comrades. "I'll go see what the hold up is."

The others watched as Iida stormed through the doorway, nearly colliding with a couple of surprised shoppers as he turned the corner. The disgruntled teen made his way past the myriad racks of clothing and products, doing his best to put on an unpleasant face so that the employees offering free samples of cologne would leave him alone.

After a few minutes of navigating the massive store and nearly getting lost, he finally found the two he was looking for standing in line for the register in the women's section. As he made his way toward Momo and Uraraka, he began to count the other people in line, trying to calculate just how much longer they would be. He soon noticed that one of them stood out from the others.

A lone teenage boy stood amongst the women and was currently conversing with his two classmates as they waited for the cashier to ring them up. Iida slowed as he approached the group. The teen seemed innocuous enough as he excitedly gabbed away, showing off the pink hoodie and cap he had picked up (which clashed horribly with his all-black outfit). However, Iida couldn't help but notice the uneasy look Ochaco was giving the guy.

"They're for my girlfriend," the guy explained. "Do you think she'll like them?"

"Um… yeah," Ochaco said unsurely.

"Those are so cute!" Momo chimed in. Unlike Ochaco, she didn't seem fazed by the boy in the slightest. "I'm sure she'll love them."

The fellow seemed overjoyed at their comments if his wide smile and blush was anything to go by. "Wow, you really think so?" He giddily took a step forward as the line moved up.

Ochaco had her eyes narrowed at him, a finger tapping on her chin. "Say… Haven't we met somewhere before?"

The smile dropped from the boy's face for the briefest of moments, but came back just as quickly as it left. "Maybe!" he replied a little too quickly. "I shop here a lot."

"Well, it's my first time here," Ochaco informed him. "But you seem really familiar."

He let out a nervous laugh. "I guess I just have that kind of face," he said amicably, though Iida could sense the tension in his voice. An awkward silence overtook the three shoppers, and Iida used that as a chance to butt in to the conversation.

"Ocacho, Momo," he called, bringing their attention away from the stranger.

"Oh hello, Iida," Momo greeted him. "How did you guys make out?"

"We're all set. Just waiting on you," he said, eyeing their new friend, who was now checking out at the register.

Ochaco leaned in closer to Iida and brought a hand up to muffle her words as she whispered in his ear. "This guy started chatting with us while we were picking out our clothes. That's why it took us so long. Something isn't right with him. I know I've met him before. I just don't know where."

Iida turned to Momo to see if she had any input on the matter. His VP shook her head. "I don't recognize him, but I have to agree that he's acting a bit strange. We should be careful."

The subject of their hushed discussion waved to them as he walked away from the counter. "Bye!" he called. "Hope we meet again sometime! We can go shopping together!"

Iida gave him a slight wave so as to not be rude while the two girls paid for their clothes. He didn't like how the peculiar fellow had chosen his friends out of all the other shoppers to talk to. They were on a mission and supposed to be discrete. And the way he had clammed up when Ochaco pointed out he looked familiar rubbed him the wrong way as well. Momo was right. If this mission was going to succeed, they needed to be more cautious. No more talking to people, and certainly no more shopping excursions.

The scalpel slid easily through the folds of his brain as the doctor hummed a merry tune. It didn't really hurt, per se. Rather, it was more like the single most uncomfortable feeling Izuku had ever experienced, and the only reason he wasn't having a panic attack at the moment was because they'd injected him with enough sedatives to tranquilize a small bear.

Of course, that didn't stop the anxiety from gripping his chest like a vice. Anyone watching the procedure would have been able to notice it from the way his chest rose a little too high during each breath, or the way his fingers twitched every time the doctor made a cut, or the tears that streamed down his face as he slowly lost himself.

Somewhere in the back of his mind, he was screaming.

"I'm not wearing that."

Bakugou leaned against the wall of the rubble-strewn bar, his arms crossed as he glared at the blonde girl in front of him. At some point, she must have dropped her previous masculine disguise, because now she was back to her regular teenage girl appearance. Or at least, Bakugou assumed that was her regular form. Said girl was happily presenting her newest purchases to him. Which would have looked great, Bakugou thought. On her.

Toga foisted the clothing in his face. "You have to, or you're gonna get noticed." In her hands was a pink sweatshirt and a pink baseball cap to match.

"Do I look like Timmy fucking Turner to you?" Bakugou asked incredulously. "That's pretty much the most noticeable color there is."

"Exactly. If you wear it, nobody is going to realize it's you."

Bakugou once again opened his mouth to retort but found that there were no words in the Japanese language capable of describing the stupidity of her logic. The truth was, he was in awe of her. In awe of her complete incompetence in even the most basic tasks. She had wasted precious time in trying to find him an inconspicuous disguise to wear, and she came back to him with _this?_ They continued their staring match a few seconds longer, the annoyance on Toga's face rivalled only by the amusement on Spinner's.

When she realized Bakugou wasn't going to take her present, she angrily stamped her foot on the ground and puffed out her cheeks.

"Ughh, who cares if it's not your color?" she snapped. "You don't want to be recognized, right? Well big, strong Bakugou wouldn't be caught dead wearing these, so it's not like anyone is going to think it's you. Now quit arguing and put it on."

Bakugou continued to stare off to the side, looking at nothing in particular. Just simply trying to avoid acknowledging the girl in front of him. Her argument may have had some reason to it, but Bakugou wasn't exactly known for letting logic dictate what he did. They remained there in the standoff for a few moments, Toga holding out the clothes while Bakugou examined the rather interesting grain on the floorboards. Just when he thought they were about to throw hands, Toga surprised him by suddenly switching up her tone. "Unless, of course, you don't really want to rescue Deku. Or meet up with your fellow classmates whom I just bumped into at the mall."

His head snapped back to her direction, and she sent him a grin when she saw she had his attention. Bakugou's mind was racing. _She saw my classmates? Here, in Kamino? Why would they be here? They don't know where Deku is, do they?_ He racked his brain to remember if anyone from his class was from Kamino or the surrounding area, but came up empty. He realized he didn't actually know where anyone was from, besides Deku. To be honest, he didn't know the first thing about any of his classmates besides their quirks and their names. Well, last names anyway.

For most of them, at least.

He listened as the girl recounted her run-in with a couple of his classmates at a nearby department store. When he asked her to describe the people she saw, one of her descriptions sounded vaguely like the gravity girl who'd actually put up a fight against him during the Sports Festival. He realized that if what Toga said really was true, then a few of his classmates must have somehow figured out the both of them were being held in Kamino and came to rescue them. He just wasn't sure which location they had, either the one Deku was being held at, or the one Bakugou had just blown up. Unable to determine if the teen was lying or not, he decided to take everything she had said at face value. He had trusted her this far, after all.

"Fine," he relented, albeit grudgingly. "I'll wear your stupid disguise."

Toga clapped her hands together in victory, a relieved look on her face. "Great!" she chirped. "I was wondering if I was gonna have to call Shigaraki after all. Here." She tossed the two articles of clothing at him, and he caught them against his chest before slipping them on over his training attire. He let out a showy exhale and glanced down at the ground, finding his reflection in a shard of broken glass. Immediately, he averted his eyes, but the image seemed to be burned into his retinas. It looked worse than he thought it would.

Toga gave him a once over, pulling at the hem of the sweatshirt to straighten out any folds and wrinkles that were showing. Bakugou slapped her arm away when her fingers lingered a bit too long on his chest. Toga hmphed, but took a step back, taking in his appearance. She grinned and gave him two thumbs up.

He hoped for the sake of his dignity that Toga had been lying and his classmates weren't actually here. If anyone he knew saw him like this, he'd have to either kill them or move to a different country.

Once Spinner was able to collect himself, he began to sift through his bag, double checking that he had all of his things. He picked up the broken remains of his weapon and slung them around his shoulder. Silence fell between them.

"I guess this is where we part ways," the lizard said at last. Bakugou's eyes widened for a moment. He had nearly forgotten that Spinner wasn't coming with them.

"What are you going to do, Spinner?" Toga asked. "I thought you couldn't go outside."

"Aye," he agreed. "But I can't stay here, either. Kurogiri will kill me when he sees what happened to this place. I'm gonna escape Kamino through the sewers. I know my way around down there pretty well, so you don't need to worry about me."

Bakugou sent him a curious look. Spinner seemed to grow self-conscious.

"What? I don't mind getting my boots a little dirty," he defended himself.

"Have you ever heard of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles?"

"The who?" the puzzled lizard asked.

Bakugou shook his head. "Nevermind." He turned to the girl beside him, who had now morphed back into her emo persona. "Let's get moving," he said, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his hot-pink hoodie.

Toga nodded and led him towards the door. "Good luck, you two," Spinner called from behind them. "Bakugou, remember what I said."

The boy nodded and followed Toga out the door, stepping out onto the busy city streets for the first time since before the training camp started. He was painfully aware of the funny looks the two of them were receiving from random passersby, but with his hood up and cap tilted downwards, he was pretty much unrecognizable unless someone got up close. Which wouldn't happen unless that person had a death wish. He did his best to keep his head down and eyes forward, trying to avoid seeing his ridiculous reflection in the glass doors and windows of shops they passed.

As they walked, he kept his eyes peeled for other villains. It was possible that some of them would be out roaming the streets, but he didn't find it likely. Most of them were easily recognizable and would be doing their best to avoid crowds. Still, he never let down his guard. If any of the villains found him, it would only be a matter of time before the rest of them showed up, and he didn't want to see where Toga's loyalties would lie if that happened.

It had been dark for quite a while by the time they reached the entertainment district, though the streets only seemed to become more crowded, Bakugou noted irritably. Toga pointed out the store she had supposedly seen his classmates in earlier. He scanned the sidewalk in front of the store, looking for anyone he might recognize, but his search turned up empty. Either they had left already, their disguises were working as intended, or Toga was full of it and they were never even there to begin with.

Before long, the crowds began to thin out as they entered a seedier part of the ward. The streets, while just a few minutes ago had been bustling with shoppers and partygoers, were now relatively empty save for a few drunken stragglers on their way home. The shops and storefronts that had previously been ablaze with neon signs and window displays were now dark, some of them boarded up. Bakugou couldn't believe that his crappy disguise had worked so well.

"It's just up ahead now," Toga informed him.

As they approached another intersection, Bakugou could hear a commotion coming from around the corner. Toga slowed, putting a finger to her lips and motioning for him to stay back. Bakugou remained a few steps behind, looking up and down the street once more for any signs of villains. Seeing that the coast was clear, he turned back to Toga and watched as she peered around the corner. Whatever she saw made her eyes widen in surprise. Wanting to see for himself, he moved forward and peered over Toga's shoulder, just barely catching a glimpse of the source of the commotion before being roughly shoved backwards by the girl.

"Hey, watch it—" Bakugou cut himself off when he felt the cold sensation of steel against his throat. He stared wordlessly at his assailant, wondering just where she'd pulled that knife from. The crazed teen narrowed her baggy, sunken eyes at him, and her message was clear. _Open your mouth, and you die._

It had been his classmates causing the disturbance. He'd only had a second to look, but he'd been able to make out about six or seven of them, each in their own shitty disguise that wouldn't fool anyone with a functioning pair of eyes. Toga certainly hadn't fallen for them if her wild reaction was anything to go by.

"Looks like your friends already found our other hideout. Time for me to say goodbye," she explained.

Knowing letting her go was probably a bad idea that would come back to bite him in the ass, he attempted to subdue her by grabbing the arm she held her knife with. He successfully managed to twist the knife away from his throat long enough to gasp when he felt another blade press up against it. The girl applied pressure, and the edge began to sink into his skin, drawing a bit of red.

"Nice try," she taunted. Her pupils dilated as she studied the blood that was now starting to run across the blade of the knife. "Tell me," she hissed into his ear, licking her lips. "Why shouldn't I spill your guts right now?"

Unnerved by her proximity and apparent fixation on blood, he resorted to the last thing he ever liked to do in these kinds of situations. Depend on others for help. From the palms of his hands shot fiery explosions, each one sending a powerful shockwave at his assailant. The girl managed to skillfully dodge backwards before it could do any real damage, but his attack had the intended effect. He could hear the worried voices of his classmates fast approaching, coming to check out whatever made the noise.

Realizing what he'd done, Toga began retreating immediately. "Ahh, smart," she said, taking a few steps backwards. "I guess that's my cue to leave. Say hi to Izuku for me. We should totally do this again sometime. Take care, Kacchan!"

Before he had the chance to tear into her for using the nickname he only allowed Deku to call him, she took off in the opposite direction, waving goodbye as she did so. Before his eyes, her body and clothing began to morph away from the depressed teenager to something else. Soon enough, she looked just like all the other drunken idiots they had passed on the way here, and right at that moment was when he heard footsteps approach him from behind.

Slowly, he turned and removed the stupid snapback from his head, tossing it the ground and letting his spiky hair go free. He took in the shocked faces of the motley crue standing before him, a feeling of satisfaction rising up at their disbelief. _That's right peons_ , _I didn't even need your help. I escaped all on my own_. They each stood there for a moment, neither side making a move, until finally Kirishima rushed forward.

"Baku-bro!" he burst out, wrapping the ex-hostage in a bone-crushing hug and lifting him off his feet. "I'm so glad your alive!"

Uraraka noticed the grimace on the Bakugou's face, and then her eyes drifted to the bead of blood coming from where Toga had held the knife. "Ah, are you injured?! Kirishima, put him down!"

"What happened?" Momo asked. "How did you escape?"

"What did they do to you? If they even laid a finger on my classmates…" Iida let the threat hang in the air, his hands curled into fists as he imagined all the things he'd do to the villains who had perpetrated this kidnapping.

"Is it just you? Where is Midoriya?" asked the bird guy. Bakugou almost hadn't noticed him, his dark body and disguise having blended into the shadows of the nearby buildings.

A vein in Bakugou's head began to throb as he was bombarded by question after question, all six of his classmates trying to speak to him at once.

"And what the hell are you wearing?" the scar-faced bastard asked, astounded.

The dam broke.

"WHAT THE FUCK ARE _YOU_ WEARING, ICY HOT?!" he exploded, his anger releasing like a fully-compressed spring. Their mouths were effectively silenced all at once. He glared at each and every one of them, causing many of them to take a step back. Satisfied at their reactions, he sighed.

"Listen up because it's been a long two days and I'm only going to say this once," he began. "Long story short: They tried to recruit me into their stupid villain club, and I told them to shove it. The hand-wearing guy fucked up Deku and sent him somewhere else. I don't know how, it was some kind of teleporting quirk. Earlier today, I escaped with the help of a couple villains, one of which agreed to show me where they were keeping him. She brought me here, but saw you guys and got spooked. You just missed her. Apparently, it's this building right ahead of us, though I guess you already figured that out on your own. Good job, I guess."

It was the abridged version; in reality much more had happened than that, but it was really all they had time for. The group took a moment to process everything he'd just said.

"So your tracking device worked, Momo," Todoroki said. "He _is_ here."

Kirishima shot him a confused look. "Did you just say villains helped you escape? Why would they do that?"

Bakugou shrugged. "One of them has taken a liking to Deku, apparently. The other basically worships Stain and follows his ideals to the letter, so I guess he thought I had the potential to be a real hero instead of some poser."

Ochaco looked uneasy. "W-what exactly did you mean when you said the hand guy 'fucked up Deku'? You're talking about Shigaraki, right?" she asked, worry evident in her voice.

Bakugou stared at the pavement, allowing the memories from that night to resurface. Fighting the bile in his throat, he recounted to them of how Shigaraki had 'prepped' Deku for some kind of operation, deliberately leaving out the part about All Might and his potential successor. There must have been a reason why something like that was kept a secret. Either way, it didn't help their rescue attempt, so none of them needed to know about it right now.

His classmates' eyes widened in horror at the gruesome recollection of what had happened to their friend.

"No way…" Ochaco breathed, the bottoms of her eyes beginning to glisten in the streetlights.

Momo gasped, seemingly struck by an unsettling thought. "Bakugou," she said seriously. "We found this place by attaching a tracker to the Nomu the villains brought with them when they attacked our camp. That means this is likely where they store their Nomu when they aren't using them. If they sent him here, then this 'operation' the villains were talking about… Could… could it be…?"

She didn't finish. She didn't have to. The meaning was not lost on anyone: Izuku Midoriya was in grave danger.

"We'd better hurry," Tokoyami urged them. With several nods, the seven of them began to turn towards the building across the street. Deku was in there. He had to be.

"Wait just a second," their class president called. The group halted, albeit with several protests and complaints that they didn't have time, Bakugou and Kirishima the loudest among them. Iida continued all the same. "I told you all that I'd put a stop to this mission at the first sign of trouble, no matter what the stakes were. And that's what I aim to do. From what Bakugou just said, a villain was here only minutes ago and saw us. They could be calling for backup right now. We've come all this way and we all want to help Midoriya, but we can't risk getting caught by the League of Villains. I'm sorry, but I have to call it now. We're going back."

"Are you for real!?" Kirishima asked incredulously, to which several others told him to quiet down, not wanting to be heard by anyone inside the building. He complied, but his frustration remained as he got up in Iida's face to compensate for his lowered tone. "Did you not understand what Momo just said? They could be turning Midoriya into a _Nomu_ in there and you wanna just turn around and leave? Try being a man."

Bakugou was stunned. He'd never seen this side of Kirishima before. He'd never realized that there was someone else in their class with an attitude to match his own. He could tell by the way his face was stretched that Iida was livid, but he kept his tone neutral. To his credit, he hadn't backed down from Kirishima's macho display. Instead, he'd squared up with him. "This isn't negotiable. I'm your class president and I'm telling you to—"

"I'm already breaking imperial hero laws by being here, Mr. Class President," Kirishima spat. "What makes you think I care about _your_ rules? I'm going in there to help Deku, and you can't stop me."

Todoroki and Tokoyami were each trying to separate the two of them before anything bad could happen. They were wasting precious time, even Bakugou could see that. But he didn't know who was right. It was true that the League would probably be closing in on them any minute now. Even if Toga hadn't ratted him out, it was likely that the villains had discovered the remnants of the bar by now and were on their way here. But on the other hand, Deku was so close. If the League really was planning on turning him into a Nomu (if they hadn't already), then he didn't have much time left.

"First of all, you all agreed to my terms before we left," Iida reminded them. "Going back on your word at a time like this will make it difficult for me to trust you in the future, and it isn't very manly, either. Secondly, I'm prepared to do whatever it takes to protect you guys. Even if it means throwing away my academic career."

Confused, Bakugou turned his head to the others, wondering if they understood just what Iida had meant by that statement. Judging from their reactions, however, they didn't have a clue either. Not until Iida took his phone out of his pocket and opened his contact page for Aizawa Shouta.

"I'll tell him everything," Iida warned. "Most of you don't know this, but this is the second time I've broken hero laws for personal reasons. I was given a free pass the first time, but that's not going to happen again. I'll be expelled if word of this mission gets out, but if it means getting everyone here back alive, I'll do it."

"Iida, wait," Ochaco spoke up. The uneasy look she'd been wearing since they'd first run into each other was gone, replaced by a calm determination. She pointed up to the top of the target building at a row of window panels. "I don't really know what you're talking about, but give me one minute. I'll float someone up there so we can confirm if Deku is there or not, and then we can go. We can't just leave here with nothing."

Bakugou felt his temper flare up once again at the perceived slight. "Who are you calling nothing, extra?!"

Iida considered her proposal for a moment, a gamut of conflicted emotions crossing his features. "Fine, I'll allow it. And furthermore, I'll be the one to float up there, but no more than one minute, you hear me?"

Ochaco nodded, her eyes hardening. Iida took a moment to steel himself. No one knew what he was going to find in there, but it didn't hurt to be mentally prepared. Though Kirishima seemed conflicted at setting such a short time limit, he didn't say anything, instead choosing to cross his arms and tap his foot impatiently as they waited for Ocacho to float him.

"Hang on a second, I'll make a pair of night vision binoculars real quick. It should help you see what's in there," Momo said, activating her quirk.

Kirishima put out a hand to stop her. "No need," he said. "I brought a pair. Here, take 'em." He handed over the expensive gadget to the black-haired boy. It was only a few seconds later that he noticed the stares from his classmates being sent his way.

"What?"

"Where did you — nevermind."

Kirishima blanched. "Uh, Amazon. I thought they might come in handy for situations like this," he said awkwardly. Bakugou rolled his eyes.

"Get going," Bakugou urged impatiently, glancing over his shoulder for any signs of villains. Only a few civilians, but they didn't seem to be paying any attention to them. "Clock's ticking."

"Right."

Ochaco placed a hand on Iida's shoulder, and he pushed himself off the ground. They all watched with bated breath as he drifted up to the glass and brought the binoculars up to his face. Almost immediately he recoiled backwards and brought a hand up to his mouth, nearly dropping the binoculars in the process. He looked queasy.

"Iida, what's wrong?" Todoroki called as softly as he could. "Are you ok?"

He nodded and brought the binoculars back up to his eyes, scanning the room once more. He seemed to be focusing on one spot more than the rest of the room, making Bakugou even more impatient to know what was inside.

"Time's up," he said. "Get back down here and tell us what you saw."

Slowly, the gravity defying boy drifted back to solid ground where Ochaco released him. Momo and Tokoyami helped ease him back to his feet. His breath had quickened, and his skin had paled noticeably. Momo kept a hand on his shoulder as he steadied himself.

"Iida," Todoroki said quietly. "What did you see? Was he there?" The question everyone was waiting to hear the answer to. He opened his mouth to speak, but seemed to have difficulty formulating his words.

"Well?" Bakugou asked impatiently.

Iida shook his head and closed his eyes. "I didn't see him," he said. "But… there was a table with restraints in the middle of the room… and a tray of surgical instruments next to it. And blood. There was a lot of blood. In the back, I was able to count about seven Nomu being held in tanks."

Bakugou grit his teeth. He _hated_ not knowing what his friend was going through. The familiar feeling of helplessness from when Shigaraki had tortured Deku right in front of him returned. They were so close, and now… He didn't want to consider the possibility that they may already be too late. Without even thinking, his feet began to carry him toward the door to the building. The fact that the all-powerful Sensei might have been there didn't even register in his mind as he imagined the beat down he would deliver to anyone in there who had played a part in the freakish Nomu experiments.

"Bakugou, come back here. We're getting away from this place," said Iida. Bakugou froze and turned to face the class president.

"How can you say that after what you just saw?!" he asked incredulously. When no answer was forthcoming, he continued stalking towards the door. "Just try and stop me, Barry Allen. I'm getting Deku out of here with or without your help." Kirishima soon fell into step behind him, not that he cared. He would bust his friend out by himself if that's what it took.

"Don't be ridiculous. The League of Villains is going to be here any minute! We have to —"

"You rang?" The voice echoed down the alleyway and halted Bakugou in his tracks. It was a voice he recognized all too well, considering it had been blabbering away at him for most of the day.

 _Well, that didn't take long_ , he thought.

It seemed the villains had nothing better to do than to wait on standby all day long. Bakugou spun around, rejoining his classmates while peering over their heads to get a better look at the villains.

Shigaraki, Toga, and Kurogiri stood side by side at the end of the narrow alleyway, blocking off the way they had come in. Ochaco gasped and pointed at the girl in the middle of them. "I-it's you…" she stammered.

Toga looked surprised for a moment, but a flash of recognition crossed her face as she took a closer look. She jumped up and down excitedly, squealing. "Oh, it's you guys! Yayyy! Let's go shopping!"

The hand covered leader sighed in annoyance and flicked the overly excited teen on her forehead, causing her to stop jumping around to rub the afflicted spot.

"Ow!" she pouted.

"No fraternizing with the enemy."

Momo's eyes widened as she put two and two together. "Wait, that was you in the mall today? Your quirk let's you impersonate other people?"

Her enquiry was met with no response. Instead, Toga was eyeing her two companions warily, who were doing the same to her.

"Himiko, what exactly were you doing earlier today?" Kurogiri questioned her.

Iida took advantage of their temporary distraction to motion for the group to run the other way and try to escape out the back of the alley. Bakugou thought they should've just tried to bust through the three of them. There were seven of them and only three villains, but he found himself running with the rest of his group anyways. They had to make it there before Kurogiri noticed and put a portal in their way. Fortunately, it seemed the three villains were too distracted by each other to notice their disappearance.

Unfortunately, it seemed another three villains had.

From around the back of the building, the remaining members of the bar crew revealed themselves, cutting off their only other route of escape. The patchwork man stopped in the middle of the alleyway, hands shoved in his pockets and a smug grin on his face. He was flanked by Fat Lip and the magician who had drank himself silly the night before. There was no sign of a hangover as he held out his arms and bowed in a welcoming gesture.

"I'm afraid you can't leave yet; the show has just begun! Though I have to say, you all certainly came dressed for the occasion."

The other villains had already caught on to their absence, and closed the gap between them with a portal. They were now trapped on both sides with very little room to maneuver. It seemed that a clash was inevitable.

He took a moment to observe his classmates, seeing if they were ready to fight. Todoroki and Kirishima had already entered a defensive stance, waiting for the enemy to strike. Iida also assumed a ready position, though he looked frustrated. His speed wouldn't do him much good without a large, open area to move around. Momo had prepared a couple canisters of flash bangs, as well as a taser for herself and Uraraka. Tokoyami, however, didn't seem ready at all. He was breathing heavily, as if exerting himself.

"Guys," he warned. "Dark Shadow is getting restless again. I don't know if I can contain him."

"Maybe you should do that thing you did in the woods a couple days ago," Todoroki suggested.

"I... I couldn't risk hurting you. Dark Shadow doesn't discriminate."

"So we meet again, Shouto," the patchwork villain addressed the half-hot half-cold student directly. Bakugou and several of their classmates turned to look at Todoroki, several eyebrows raised. Said student stepped forward until he was standing in front of their group.

"Where is Midoriya?" the boy demanded in response, eyes alight with fire and frost.

The man shrugged. "I dunno. Dead probably. I'm more curious about you."

Todoroki grit his teeth in annoyance at the casual change of subject. "Me?" he asked warily.

Next to him, Iida said in a low voice, "Todoroki, don't get distracted."

"That scar of yours is pretty gnarly. Heh, it looks a little bit like some of mine. I wonder... Did Endeavor give it you?"

Red flames had begun to radiate from his left side as the villain spoke, growing stronger and brighter with every word. His classmates took a couple steps back to create some distance from the heat. The patchwork man simply looked amused.

"No," Todoroki replied, rage contorting his features. "And you should learn to mind your own damn business!"

The villain narrowed his eyes. "You think you're hot stuff, don't you," he said whilst charging up a flame attack of his own. His flames burned a sapphire blue in contrast to Todoroki's red. "I'm hotter."

Bakugou braced himself for the incoming heat, but before it could come, a thunderous boom came from the opposite side of the building, shaking the ground. Both flame quirk users temporarily allowed their flames to subside.

The villains looked around, confused. It seemed that this wasn't their doing. Kurogiri opened up a portal and stuck his head through for a brief moment before immediately recoiling.

"The pros are here!" he hissed.

That was all the seven of them needed to hear before they jumped into action. Todoroki turned around and shouted to his classmates.

"Get down!"

Bakugou and the others ducked just in time to avoid getting their hair singed off by a white hot wall of flame. A portal opened up in front of Shigaraki and absorbed most of the heat, but the three villains were forced to retreat in order to avoid getting burned. Todoroki spun back to the three guarding the back entrance of the alley and blasted them with a glacier of ice.

The patchwork villain unleashed his own torrent of flame, halting the glacier in its tracks and sending a cloud of steam rolling through the alleyway. With the students' strongest attack effectively mitigated, the villains readied themselves to collapse in on them. Magne rushed in to the wall of steam, activating her quirk as she did so, but to her surprise, the only people she managed to magnetize were Shigaraki, Toga, and Kurogiri. She had crossed the alleyway to the other side, and the students were nowhere to be found.

From the roof of the adjacent building, Uraraka gasped, breathing heavily as she released her classmates from zero gravity. The poor girl had turned a sickly shade of green from the stress of lifting their combined weight, as well as herself.

"Quick thinking, Ochaco," Momo commended her, bending down to rub circles on her back. "You got us out of quite the pinch there."

Iida nodded, peering over the edge of the roof. "Yes, nice job. I don't think they've realized where we went. We should go before they catch on."

"And leave the pros to deal with the League on their own?" Kirishima asked unsurely.

Bakugou scoffed. "What, you think the pros can't handle a few lowlifes like them?"

Kirishima blanched. "Well, I mean it's sort of our fault the villains were attracted here in the first place, right? Shouldn't we try to help?"

"No," Todoroki said flatly. "Bakugou is right. The pros will be able to handle them. We'll just be getting in their way if we try to help, not to mention the legal repercussions. We've done enough damage as it is."

When nobody offered any further protests, Iida once again took charge of the group, but not before shooting grateful glances to Todoroki and Bakugou for backing him up. He'd have to have a talk with Kirishima about his impulsive behavior later. For now though, he had a duty to his classmates to get them home safely.

They were now faced with a new dilemma: how to go about putting some distance between themselves and the warehouse. The gaps between the buildings were much too large for everyone to jump across, and Ochaco was out of commission for the time being, so floating away wasn't an option. He turned to the rest of his classmates, wondering if they had any ideas on how to proceed. Before he could voice his concerns, a deafening blast shook the building they stood upon, sending Iida and a few of his classmates to the floor.

After confirming that his ear drums hadn't been ruptured, Iida shakily rose to his feet and stumbled over to the edge of the roof. What he saw below made his skin crawl. The south end of the warehouse, as well as half a city block behind it, had been completely leveled. As he gazed at the black plumes of smoke and dust covering up a portion of the night sky, Iida just couldn't wrap his mind around what could've wrought such destruction on the unsuspecting city. Had the warehouse been filled with explosives?

"Oh my God…," Momo breathed, covering her mouth with a hand. "All those people…"

Bakugou stared wordlessly at the ruins of the stores, offices, and apartment buildings, wondering just how many were caught in the blast that not even a hundred of his explosions could match. He knew the seven of them were lucky just to be alive. If the shockwave had been directed at them, none of them would have survived. He scanned the area beneath them, looking for any signs of life.

 _Where are you, Deku?_

As the dust began to settle, he could just barely make out the shapes of a small group of people in the rubble, some standing, some prone. His jaw clenched when he recognized the first figure, the hero he'd interned with last month. Best Jeanist was lying on the ground and struggling to rise. Bakugou stared at his former employer, disbelieving that he could still be alive after taking the full force of that blast.

Bakugou's eyes shifted to the figure standing in front of him, a tall, muscular man with a metal helmet covering his head. Plastic tubes wrapped around his shoulders and connected to the black mask. He couldn't make out what the man was saying, but the sound of his distorted voice sent shivers down his spine.

The members of the League of Villains that had cornered them in the alley stood behind the man. One of them, Shigaraki, was speaking to him. After a moment, a portal opened up, and Bakugou watched each of the villains file through one-by-one until only the man remained to face the defeated heroes.

So this was the Sensei the villains wouldn't shut up about. It had to be.

There was a smaller figure beside Sensei, standing so motionlessly Bakugou almost missed it. He had to strain his eyes to see it clearly through the smoke and dust. It was hard to make out, but its form was irregular, like it was standing at an angle and tilting its head back. His heart rate began to accelerate.

"Yo, Speed Racer, you still got those night vision binoculars?" he asked.

Iida began to pat himself down, checking each of his pockets and coming up empty. He shook his head. "I must have dropped them when the villains showed up."

"I can see well in the dark," Tokoyami said, sidling up next to Bakugou on the edge of the roof. The boy's eyes widened as he took in the destruction the blast had caused. "My God…"

Bakugou pointed down to the scene unfolding below them, and Tokoyami's gaze followed his finger. "What do you see down there?"

He waited as his classmate's eyes scanned the field of rubble. His pupils dilated to the size of quarters as he observed, something Bakugou found extremely unsettling. He heard someone approach him from behind. It was Todoroki, getting down on one knee and silently watching everything play out from over his shoulder. To his left, Ochaco did the same, tears welling up in her eyes. Momo continued to rub circles into her back, her own tears falling away from her face and being absorbed by Ochaco's clothes.

"The League of Villains is gone, probably warped away," Tokoyami said, making everyone feel marginally better. "I can see Tiger, and it looks like he's found Ragdoll as well. Her eyes are open, but she doesn't seem responsive. She could be sedated."

"Oh, thank heavens she's alive," Momo said, a sigh of relief escaping her lips. "I was worried about her." Ochaco nodded slightly and wiped away at her cheeks.

"What else do you see?" Bakugou pressed him.

"There's Mt. Lady, and Best Jeanist—"

Another blast, smaller this time, echoed through the night like a gunshot. Tokoyami gagged and screwed his eyes shut as a hole opened up in Best Jeanist's abdomen, sending another cloud of dust into the air. Ochaco's silent tears turned to muffled sobs as she turned away and buried her face in Momo's shoulder.

"Hey, Big Bird," Bakugou said, putting a hand on the boy's shoulder and shaking it. " _Focus_. Tell me about the villains."

Several tense seconds passed by before Tokoyami once again turned his attention back to the standoff below. Bakugou could see the boy's arms shaking as he propped himself up above the guard rail. His eyes zeroed in on the other side of the battleground this time, taking in every detail about the villains.

"Th-there's two villains as far as I can tell. The tall one is wearing a mask, so I can't really say who it is. He's the one that caused the blast, I think."

"And the other?" asked Bakugou. Tokoyami gulped.

"...It's a Nomu. But it's the smallest one I've ever seen. Its shape is strange, almost like its arms are broken. I… I can't really make out wh—"

Down below, the figure shifted. Even with all the dust polluting the air, Bakugou knew that the cold, dead eyes of the Nomu had turned in their direction and fixed themselves on them. His heart climbed into his throat.

Suddenly, Tokoyami was scrambling backwards, eyes wide as saucers, until his back crashed against the door to the roof. His hands ran through the black feathers on his head, trying to soothe the agitated shadow beast within him. Kirishima and Iida were at his side in an instant.

"No…" he muttered. "No..."

The two boys exchanged glances before turning back to their classmate, hoping to prevent him from having a mental breakdown. A rampaging shadow demon was the last thing they needed on their plates right then. The troubled boy clutched his head in his hands, feathers being pulled loose and falling to the floor as Iida and Kirishima both tried to comfort him. He was crying, Bakugou realized.

Bakugou's heart pounded in his chest as he stood and approached the three of them.

"Hey," he said. Tokoyami didn't look up at him, just continued to stare at the floor as his hands gripped the sides of his face.

Bakugou kicked the boy's legs out from his fetal position, eliciting a startled squawk. He ignored the heated glare from Kirishima and Iida's attempts to push him away as he knelt down beside Tokoyami. Grabbing a fistful of his shirt, he pulled him forward until their faces were only inches apart. Tokoyami regarded him with fear, and Bakugou could see the shadow in him screaming to get out.

"Bakugou, release him," Iida hissed, outraged. "Dark Shadow must not—"

"Who did you see down there?" Bakugou asked, unable to keep the shakiness out of his voice.

Tokoyami looked at him. His mouth opened and closed, but no words came out. Bakugou shook him roughly.

"Well? Say it! The Nomu, who is it?" Why did he ask questions he already knew the answer to?

Ochaco was on her feet now, tears no longer falling as her features morphed into frustration. "Bakugou, that's enou—"

"It's Midoriya."

The girl froze in place. Everyone stopped what they were doing, a creeping horror seeming to press down on the rooftop like a descending fog. Kirishima asked Tokoyami what he had meant.

The boy gripped Bakugou's wrist and wrenched it away from his shirt before pushing him away. Bakugou didn't resist.

"The Nomu," Tokoyami's voice cracked. "It's him. Half his face is gone but it's definitely him. Those were his eyes." He returned to his previous position against the door, face buried in the crook of his arm against his knees. Except this time, his classmates were too stunned to comfort him. "The heroes were too late. _We_ were too late."

Silence engulfed them, the blaring of distant sirens the only sound to reach their ears up on the city rooftop. No one moved as they struggled to comprehend what this meant. Bakugou had told them what could happen if they weren't fast enough. But it seemed the full weight of his words hadn't sunken in until that moment.

His nails dug into his palms as he rose to his feet, flashes of the conversation he'd had with Spinner earlier that day crossing his mind. How was he supposed to help Deku now? Was there even anything left to save? Bakugou hadn't even fought anyone and yet he still lost.

Once again, he slowly approached the edge of the roof. Once again, he peered over the guard rail. And once again, he found Deku staring up at him. It seemed Sensei was still too wrapped up in his conversation with the heroes to notice, but Deku saw them. And he still hadn't made any indication to Sensei that they were there.

Bakugou met his gaze, a staring contest from seven stories high, and his breath hitched. Tokoyami had been right. Although not as bright and hopeful as they usually were, those were his eyes. _His_ eyes. Not the blank, lifeless orbs he'd seen in the monster that had ravaged the USJ, but the eyes of Izuku Midoriya.

And they said _help me_.


	6. Nomudoriya

Toshinori Yagi pressed his ear to the wooden exterior of the building. Not a single sound could be heard inside. The windows showed no light either. An inkling of doubt began to overtake him. Was there even anyone here, or had the police been given false info? Behind him were several pro heroes, including the #2 hero Endeavor and Gran Torino, his old sensei. Also present was an entire battalion of SWAT police, ready to storm the building and rescue his missing students from the clutches of the League of Villains.

The knot of doubt tightened. He hoped his successor was unharmed.

"Pizza delivery!" he heard Edgeshot's drawling voice in his earpiece. That was his cue.

Pulling his arm back, All Might sent a forceful punch into the side of the building, being careful to restrain his power so as to not harm anyone inside. There was no telling what position his students would be in, and hurting them was the last thing he wanted to do.

The first thing he noticed about the room inside was that it was dark. All the lights had been turned off, and it was eerily silent. If anyone was in there, they did not want to be found. The second thing he noticed were the bits and pieces of furniture strewn around the room. Even the bottles of alcohol in the back had been knocked off the shelf. All Might frowned. He hadn't hit the wall _that_ hard.

Gran Torino was by his side in an instant, the young upstart Kamui Woods not far behind. They, too, froze when they saw the state of the bar.

"Midoriya, Bakugou!" All Might called into the room. No answer. Edgeshot slid into the room through the doorway he had knocked on, his eyes scanning the area.

"There's no one here, All Might," he said.

All Might grit his teeth in frustration. If the villains weren't here, then perhaps they were all at the warehouse and this had been a ploy to split up their forces. His hand found its way to his earpiece. He pressed the button and spoke.

"Jeanist, this is All Might. Report."

He released the button and waited with bated breath for one second, two seconds, three seconds. No response. His eyes widened.

Behind him, shouts of alarm began to echo off the city buildings. All Might turned to gaze down at the street below. Dark globules of some kind began to appear around the police perimeter. He watched as lean, blackened limbs emerged from them. Soon, several hulking zombies stood in their place, looming over the policemen with blank expressions on their deformed faces.

"Endeavor!" All Might boomed. The #2 hero had already let out a blast of white hot flames, sending the nearest Nomu crumpling to the ground. He turned and looked up at him. "We've lost contact with the warehouse team! I'm going to assist them, can you handle things here?"

Around them, police were trying to form lines as the Nomu terrorized their ranks. Their bullets seemed to do no damage against the creatures that couldn't feel pain. Those portals… they hadn't looked like Kurogiri's. He had a bad feeling that they were the work of someone much stronger, someone he had been dreading to face.

"Who do you think you're talking to, All Might? I can handle a few brain-dead grunts!" Endeavor bellowed, dashing at yet another Nomu. "Get going!"

The superhero didn't need to be told twice. Crouching down and bracing his knees, he jumped as far as he could, and within seconds he had rocketed past multiple city blocks. He leapt and bounded across the city, the wind buffeting his face as he headed for the warehouse. At the apex of his jumps, he could see a plume of smoke rising over the city in the distance. _Not fast enough…_

He landed in the middle of what looked to be a warzone. Entire structures had been reduced to piles of ash and cement. There must have been countless bodies trapped under the rubble, perhaps some of them still alive. As the dust cleared, he began to notice shapes lying on the ground around him. He recognized the large figures of Gang Orca and Tiger, with Ragdoll in his embrace, and the slimmer bodies of Best Jeanist and Mt. Lady. The entire warehouse squad had been wiped out.

There was only one man he knew of capable of doing that.

"It's been nearly 30 seconds since I sent the Nomu over there. You're slowing down, _All Might_."

A shiver ran down the #1 hero's back. He'd never forget that voice, distorted as it was. It was the voice of the only man who had ever come close to defeating him. The man who had mortally wounded him years ago, forcing him to live on a timer each day. It was a voice he had hoped to never hear again.

Gran Torino darted in and landed beside him, the wind from his arrival blowing away the dust in the air. Slowly, his foe was revealed.

All Might bit back a gasp as his eyes landed upon the grotesque body of his rival. He supposed he shouldn't really be surprised at his appearance. After all, their previous fight had ended quite messily. All Might even thought he had killed the man. Perhaps his shock was more due to learning that a human could survive with such injuries.

"Been a while, All for One," he replied coolly. "I see time has certainly done you no favors."

The man chuckled, earning glares from the #1 hero and his old mentor. He reached up and removed his helmet, revealing the scarred flesh underneath. _His eyes are gone._ "On the contrary, time has been quite gracious to me. Aren't you the one who is battling the clock?" he asked mockingly.

All Might grit his teeth. So the bastard knew. "You're perceptive to have figured out my weakness so easily."

The masked villain scoffed. "Come now. Any idiot with enough free time on their hands could notice that you only make one or two hero appearances a day. Quite a drop from when you were in your prime, wouldn't you agree?"

"Most would attribute that statistic to my new teaching job, I'd imagine," he responded, doing his best to keep his voice even. He wouldn't let All for One get under his skin again. It nearly cost him the fight last time. Beside him, Gran Torino shifted his leg backwards and lowered himself, ready to dart in at the drop of a dime.

All for One clapped his hands and rubbed them together greedily, as if the main course had just been served. "Ah, right. You're a schoolteacher now. I must admit, it's not really a profession I ever imagined you taking up. You're in the market for a new successor, I presume. And speaking of successors, I think young Izuku Midoriya was a great choice. He's got quite the heroic spirit."

All Might's eyes flashed dangerously. "Where are Midoriya and Bakugou?" he demanded. "I swear if you hurt even a hair on either of their heads, I'll make you regret it."

All for One's mirth turned into outright laughter, creating a forced wheezing rattle that vaguely reminded the hero of nails on a chalkboard. "What's so funny?" Gran Torino grunted.

"A hair on their heads, you say?" the villain repeated. "Well, to be honest I'm not sure about Bakugou's whereabouts. He escaped from my League earlier today, you see. However, I'm afraid I have some bad news about Izuku."

All for One held out his arm and gestured to his side. From behind him, a figure emerged from the section of the warehouse that still stood, smoke billowing out around him from the fires within. All Might's chest began to hammer as he watched it come closer. It was small and walked unnaturally, it's arms bent at strange angles. _It couldn't be…_

The figure stepped into the moonlight as it reached All for One's side, and All Might's heart sank into the pit of his stomach as he stared at what had become of his protege.

The boy he'd first met in a villain attack, who had reminded him what it meant to be a hero, who he'd taught and bonded with like the son he had never had time to have, was now a shadow of what he once was. The cheerful optimism and awe he had grown accustomed to seeing in the boy's eyes was gone, replaced by pain and ice.

Still though, he wasn't completely lifeless, not like the Nomu he'd battled at the USJ. All Might could sense the cold, calculating intelligence in his piercing gaze, and that filled him with hope. Hope that the boy could still be saved. _Don't worry, Izuku. I'm here to save you._

A deep, baleful laughter echoed across the debris-scattered field. All for One casually strode behind Izuku and slapped his hands down onto his shoulders, beaming at All Might like a proud father. The action made his blood boil in his veins.

"You're awfully quiet over there, All Might. What's the matter? Don't like my little science project?"

All Might grit his teeth, his rage bubbling to the surface at the way All for One degraded his pupil. "I see you've grown bored of simply toying with people. You've progressed to completely robbing them of their free will. Is there no depth that you will not sink to, All for One?" he spat.

"You misunderstand me. This was all done in the interest of 'toying' with _you_. I wonder what you'd do…" The villain held out his arm, and All Might's eyes widened as it began bulking up, not stopping until his bicep was the size of his torso. He then curled the massive appendage around Izuku's head, pinning him against his chest. "...to stop me from crushing this boy's head."

Gran Torino was on him in an instant, darting at the man before Toshinori could warn him to stop. All for One saw it coming, and with a flick of his enhanced arm, the old man was sent crashing through layers of rubble hundreds of meters away.

Young Midoriya continued to stare at him with those calculating eyes, apathetic to the immediate danger he was in. All Might could feel his heart climb into his throat. This was his fault. All for One somehow realized the connection he shared with the hero-to-be, and had put Izuku through hell just to get to him. He couldn't allow the boy to come to any more harm for him than he already had.

"No, wait…" All Might said, holding his hand out placatingly. "Don't hurt him. Just... tell me what it is you want from me."

The disfigured man regarded him thoughtfully for a moment, a glint of amusement hiding in the corners of his lips. "Hmm, let's see… Would it be too much to ask you to die painfully?"

All Might gulped. _That_ was his request? For him to die? In truth, he was more than prepared to lay down his life for his young ward. The only thing stopping him from doing so was that All for One wasn't good for his word. The man was known to spin whatever lie he could conceive of to get someone to do his bidding. It was unlikely All for One would simply return young Midoriya to the heroes if All Might obliged his deadly request.

"You better not be thinking what I think you are, Toshi," wheezed Gran Torino, stepping over a pile of rubble. He looked worse for wear. Blood trickled down his face from a head wound, and he wore a pained expression.

All for One sighed in annoyance. "Ah, but you're no idiot. Fine, how about this? Send the old geezer away, and we'll settle this one on one like we did 5 years ago, just you and me. I'll even let him rescue your fallen comrades here," All for One said, gesturing at the prone figures of their warehouse team. "I assure you that is the most generous offer I am going to make."

All Might was stunned. His nemesis had him in the palm of his hand and could've asked him to do just about anything, yet here he was allowing the playing field to be evened. It didn't feel right. All for One really wasn't the type to gamble. He had always played it safe in the past, lurking in the shadows and biding his time until finding the perfect opportunity to strike. So why give up his advantage here? Was this part of a trap he was setting for him, or was he really that confident he could defeat him in a one-on-one battle? Either way, he didn't really have a choice if he wanted Izuku to come out of this alive.

"I accept," he said at last. "Torino, please rescue our comrades. I'll take down All for One."

"Hmph, fine. But before I do, a word of advice. If you want to save the boy, stick to what you're good at: punching and kicking. Don't exchange words, and don't let him manipulate you."

Injured as he was, the old man moved pretty quickly, and he could lift a lot more than his size would indicate. Soon enough, their allies had been safely evacuated, leaving only him, All for One, and young Midoriya standing in the eerily silent pocket of the city.

Seeing that they were both alone, All for One finally released the boy from his death grip, even putting some distance between the two of them as a show of good faith. For a moment, neither of them said anything. All Might took the time to size up his foe. It had been years since they had last come face-to-face, so it was entirely possible that he had a brand new selection of quirks to use against him. The way he bulked up his arm was new, and reminded All Might of the villain Izuku had taken down in the forest a few days ago, who went by the name Muscular. If that was the case, physical strength alone may not be enough to defeat him. He'd have to stay on his toes if he wanted to win this fight and rescue Midoriya.

"I suppose you're wondering if he can be returned back to normal." All for One smiled fiendishly as he slipped the black helmet back on. "Well, he can't. Once the brain has been-"

The villain was promptly cut off when All Might, who had decided to take his old teacher's words to heart, launched himself forward. He spanned the battlefield in the blink of an eye, fist extended ahead of him, ready to knock the murderer of his former master out cold in one hit. Perhaps it was because he was blind, or maybe it was because his reflexes had dulled considerably, but oddly enough the man made no attempt to shield himself from the incoming punch.

"DETROIT SMAAAASH!"

The blow never came, however. All Might gasped as his entire body was frozen mid-air, fist only an inch away from the villain's face. All for One tilted his head back.

"My, my. You gave me quite the fright there. I've never known you to interrupt a villain's monologue before."

Now the hero was being flung backwards through the air. His body smashed into the side of a nearby office building, breaking through wall after wall like they were made of paper before his momentum finally ran out. He lay there amidst the broken glass and office furniture for a moment, stunned. What was that quirk? He had watched his enemy closely throughout their whole clash, and he was certain that he hadn't even moved at all. Had his power really increased _that_ significantly over the past few years?

Shakily, he regained his footing and strode back to the hole in the wall his body had created. It seemed All for One hadn't moved at all from where he'd been standing, instead preferring to lean against a pole sticking out of the ground, arms crossed.

"What's taking so long, All Might? Back in your younger days, you would have been back on your feet in an instant."

Doing his best to shut out the taunts, All Might again bounded across the field towards his opponent, and again he was met with the same invisible force slamming into him like a freight train. Only this time, he dug his feet into the ground and pushed against it. The power was immense, even rivaling One for All at 100%. Slowly, he began to make some headway, but it was like moving through molasses. Every step sapped more of his strength away, robbing him of the time he had left until his injury crippled him. He had to end this quickly.

All for One continued to lean against the pole, staring at him with the same unimpressed disposition as he approached. Finally entering close combat range once more, All Might wound his arm back and launched another smash at his foe, but found his fist being met with heavy resistance.

"Wanna know what I hate most about you?" All for One asked, lazily sidestepping the blow and circling around the pro hero. "I spent decades building up my empire. Most of my long life has been dedicated to doing favors and forming alliances. Carefully maneuvering pieces into precisely the spot I wanted them. It made me quite popular. But as you took out my friends left and right, the masses cheered you on. You climbed straight to the top thanks to _my_ hard work, _my_ sacrifices. No one would even know your name if not for me. So, stop acting all high and mighty."

All Might grit his teeth and attempted to send a flurry of punches at the villain, but they were so slow that even one of the drunkards stumbling around the Kamino ward would've been able to dodge them. The man laughed as he lazily sidestepped each one. Out of frustration, All Might momentarily forgot Gran Torino's advice and responded to his enemy's provocations.

"This power…" he grunted, breathing heavily from the constant effort he exerted just to stay standing. "How are you doing this… so effortlessly? When did you get… so strong?"

"So you still haven't figured it out," All for One chuckled, shaking his head bemusedly. "I want you to look at me, All Might, and then take a good look at your young pupil over there."

All Might knew taking his eyes off of his nemesis was a bad idea that could potentially end him, but he also knew if All for One had truly wanted to kill him, he could have done so by now. So he did as he was told. With great difficulty, he turned his body around to get a better look at his protege. Finally seeing up close what the bastard had done to him, his eyes widened, and he knew the image he was met with would haunt him for the rest of his life.

Nomudoriya was breathing heavily, visible signs of fatigue beginning to set in as he stood there, jaw clenched in intense concentration. Moonlight reflected off of his ashen skin, covered in sweat, giving him an eerie pallid sheen. His mangled arms, clearly not having been taken proper care of, hung limply at his sides. The boy was pretty much unrecognizable from the plain-looking student he knew. All Might gasped as he came to the sudden realization that this power that nearly matched his own was not coming from All for One, but from his protege.

"See? You've had your back to your real opponent this whole time. I haven't even lifted a finger against you."

"How… W-what have you done to him?"

"Besides turning him into a Nomu? Oh, nothing much. I only returned his quirk to him."

"H-his quirk?" All Might asked, stunned.

"Oh yes. As fate would have it, I took his quirk when he was very young. I believe that's why One for All never really agreed with him. It tried to meld with a quirk that was never actually there. Now that he has it back, he's much more capable of using One for All's full power, wouldn't you agree?"

All Might finally gave in to the force weighing down on him, sinking to his knees as he tried to make sense of everything he had just been told. Everything All for One had said sounded so unlikely, so contrived. Yet, his logic _did_ explain how Izuku had become so strong so quickly. This entire fight, they had both been using 100% of One for All against each other, and it was just about as even a match as it could be. Eventually, Nomudoriya also fell to his knees gasping for breath, and the weight on All Might's back was lifted.

"Now you are beginning to understand why I took Midoriya," All for One said. "Why I asked you to send your allies away and why I sent my League away as well. I'm curious to see which of you is stronger. That's why you're going to fight until one of you is dead. And you can rest assured that there won't be any interruptions from me or anybody else. I'll make sure of that."

* * *

 **... sorry for the late update. Honestly, I'm losing interest in this story and the fandom in general. I used to keep up to date with the manga every week, but I haven't read a new chapter in the last couple of months. I intend to complete the arc, and I have the next two chapters planned out for the most part, but after that I'll probably put this story on hiatus. Maybe I'll return to it when the new season comes out in October, but until then I may start a fic in another fandom or just focus on school.**


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